Reposted from Inside Housing

Domestic violence victim loses High Court bedroom tax case.

Our demo yesterday was quiet but emotionally exhausting. We are hearing a lot of stories from people who are very obviously chronically ill. These people are all Ill and had sick notes from their doctors but the Jobcentre yet again are saying that these sick notes aren’t good enough. They are ignoring a lot of sick notes and in some cases loosing them and claiming that they didn’t exist. One lady who was obviously very ill and disabled has her money stopped for 3 months all over christmas. She was freezing cold because she didn’t have the money to put her heating on due to having pay as you go metres. She didn’t realise that she could get her housing benefit paid to her on a zero income basis either so she is now in debt to her landlord. She challenged her non payment and won but the job centre…

As part of our brand new campaign, General Election 2015: Single Parents Decide, we’ve asked MPs from the three main parties who have experience of single parent life to share their stories with us, we’re kicking off with  Teresa Pearce MPs story.

I am a very lucky woman. I have a well-paid job that I enjoy and two fantastic grown-up daughters.

But it was not always that way. I spent many years as a single parent juggling jobs and childcare and the constant worry of how it would all turn out.

When people see me now as an MP and learn that I was a single Mum who brought up two girls on her own they say “I don’t know how you did it!” Well, I will let you in on a secret; I don’t know how I did it, either. I think the reason that I managed to…

Fascism is, IMHO, rooted in a set of natural urges from our caveman past, urges which once, in our animal past, were necessary and vital, but in the modern world cause nothing but suffering and degradation to both its victims, and its perpetrators.
Fascism is the mindset of the hunting party. . . Think about it – when hunting, you;

Cannot have any compassion or empathy with you prey, or the hunt will fail, (Fascists have no empathy for their enemies)

Must quickly, violently and unquestioningly obey the leader, or the hunt will fail, (Fascists worship their leaders)

Must all act with unity of purpose, or the hunt will fail, (Marching, Flags, Uniforms. Fascists surrender their individuality to the cause)

Must relentlessly pursue the prey with bloodthirsty energy, or the hunt will fail, (Fascist language of threat and paranoia)

The prey must occupy your entire consciousness, or the hunt will…

(not satire – it’s the Cameron government!)

The Cameron government has awarded an £80 million NHS contract to a private firm despite the company charging taxpayers £7 million more than an NHS consortium bidding against it:

Stoke NHS hospital scanning contract won by private firm

The government, however, hasn’t said why the firm – Alliance Medical Group – won the contract despite its bid being so much more expensive.

That’s because the bidding process was for some reason secret.

Ian Syme, co-ordinator of pressure group North Staffordshire, said of the awarding of the contract:

“This whole process has been shrouded in secrecy. We don’t even know who – expert adviser or public representative – were on the panel.”

This, of course, has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that a director of the firm is none other than disgraced ‘cash for access‘ Tory MP Malcolm Rifkind.

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Please feel free to…

(not satire – it’s the UK today!)

Rifkind has resigned as Chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee.

In his resignation statement, Rifkind reckons that the fact he was prepared to be in the pay of the Chinese is not “relevant to my work as chairman of the intelligence and security committee”.

Really?

Anyway, here’s Rifkind’s bizarre resignation statement:

“None one of the current controversy with which I am associated is relevant to my work as chairman of the intelligence and security committee of parliament.

However, I have today informed my colleagues that while I will remain a member of the committee, I will step down from the chairmanship.

The committee is due to be dissolved in little over a month with the prorogation of parliament for the forthcoming general election. The main substantive work which needs to be completed will be the publication of our privacy and security report during March.