Welfare Reform Bill- Unjust and Unfair
Tue 8th Nov 2011
Kevin Flanagan, Director of St. Antony's Centre for Church and Industry, has spoken out in support of proposed amendments to the Welfare Reform Bill during its passage through Parliament in the coming weeks. The Bill in its present form allows the Governement to reclaim overpayments in benefits that occured through administrative or comouter errors. Since 1975 procedures have been in place to protect claimants from having to refund from thier benefits overpayments that were not their fault and arose from administrative errors.
"If the present Government proposals go through, I am gravely concerned that a number of people who are receiving benefits could, through no fault of thier own, be placed in debt and face other far reaching consequences for matters which were beyone thier control. The Welfare Reform Bill would give automatic right for the authorities to reclaim or deduct 'over-payments' from benefits payments. This cannot be in the interest of social and legal justice, especially if the claimant has fulfilled thier part of the contract, i.e has received monies based on a calculation undertaken by the benefit Authority. If at a later stage the calculations were inaccurate or an administrative error has been found and the individual claimant has spent their money, why should they be penalised when actually they have fulfilled their part of the contract and have no control over the error?
Many families and individuals on benefits arrange thier budget around the known income from the benefits they receive. Therefore any deductions over which the individual claimant has no control would be unjust and ultimately unfair. The awarding body can without any penalty to itself or accountability for its error, impose a charge against the claimant.
We strongly urge community Groups and those dealing with benefit claimants to support the proposed amendments by Baroness Hollins sponsored by CSA, to protect the long standing legislative position whereby claimants cannot be penalised for errors on the part of the authorities.
In a situation where acess to legal advice and cutbacks in legal aid are taking place, claimants are never in a good position to challenge and fight authorities if and when a change is imposed upon them. The legislature has to recognise the vulnerable position and difficulties that individuals will be place under if the Welfare Reform Bill proceeds through the House unchallenged. It would be a poor day for Social Justice and a field day for Agencies that have poor administrative systems in the knowledge that they can, without being held to account, reclaim sums caused by thier own failure of management or administration. This cannot be right and needs to be challenged if claimants are to have confidence in the integrity of the whole Welfare Benefits System."
Kevin Flanagan