Once again we see how the government is prepared to reward a complete lack of performance (over 40% of Atos decisions overturned on appeal) with huge amounts of money, while depriving vulnerable, already-struggling people of the pittance on which they rely. In this case, it’s even worse because this guy is earning vast sums, in part, FOR depriving people of the pittance..
Is it 40% of Atos decisions overturned on appeal, or is it 40% of those decisions which go to an an appeal are overturned? Vastly diffferent numbers, you know, and the distinction’s important.
Well, since the only ones that can be overturned on appeal are those that go to appeal..
He and his company have blood on their hands, and that money is blood money,
Excuse me while I lie down in a darkened room for a while.
Cost of appeals to the tax payer more than £1.15m per week.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmhansrd/cm130117/debtext/130117-0002.htm
Thirdly, because of the failure of so many initial assessments, the appeal procedure is grossly overloaded and hugely expensive. No less than 41% of decisions are appealed, of which 38% are won. At £60 million in a single year, the appeals have cost the taxpayer more than half of the £110 million that was spent on the original assessments. Moreover, the National Audit Office has castigated the Department for failing to penalise Atos for what it politely calls its “underperformance” and for not setting “sufficiently challenging” targets.
Civil service code of practice:
• carry out your fiduciary obligations responsibly (that is make sure public money and other resources are used properly and efficiently);
I’ve just sat through George Osborne’s arrogant gloating performance where he announced his spending review and listened in horror as he told us he was limiting public sector pay rises to 1& and stopping annual increments justly earned by service and capping welfare again and making people wait seven days before they get their benefits and making jobseekers sign on every week and so it went on and on and on. Then I read this obscene news that the man in charge of the company that blithely takes away a sick person’s only means of support and forces them to look for work, many of whom are so desperately sick they die within weeks of this…that this guy who never wanted for anything in his life, who already ‘earned’ far more in a week than most of us can ever hope to see in a year, whose world is so far removed from ours that it may as well be a different planet…THIS ‘MAN’ is somehow so much more worthy and necessary that he is further rewarded with a WEEKLY take home pay of 44K….. well now I understand not just intellectually but viscerally, from the innermost part of my soul, why the Russian revolution happened and why they executed the Tsar and his family. If only I had a gun…..
This situation has come about because as usual with this government the man i/c of ATOS is a person who moves in the same social circle a senior politicians, I believe he and his company are financial supporters of the Con’s party.
This syndrome of a “political class” has got worse since the advent of career politicians (ie you’ve never done a bona-fide job let alone an ordinary one). These folks are mostly from the upper echelons of society in the first place so often haven’t ever lived in ordinary neighbourhoods or been to regular primary or secondary schools. Their experience of ordinary people (or, god forbid, poor or disadvantaged people) is thus limited.
How, therefore, can they possibly understand the impact of reductions in benefits, ATOS assessments, pay freezes or for that matter the removal of universal provisions such as local acute hospitals or even libraries/swimming pools/play parks etc?
How, therefore, also, can they possibly be the expert in Housing, Health, Defence etc when they only got the brief last week and have never done a job even vaguely connected to it?
As alluded to above, they are simply in the same echelon of society as those who own companies, sit on quangos, are part of the “general management” infiltration of our lives (or worse still, management consultants – who get paid millions for coming up with, or often failing to come up with, answers which staff on the ground could come up with in a weekend, if asked).
The same echelon of society that is paid more and yet often seems, strangely, to pay less tax.
The Big Society – don’t make me laugh!
What makes a society fairer is progressive taxation paid by everybody and wide-ranging non-stigmatising provision of facilities and benefits to all of society, if necessary taxed back from the higher earners – and a reasonable gap (largely thought to be the x20 multiple) between top and bottom.
I find it’s quite therapeutic to have a rant now and again and certainly feel better for this one.
Apparently David Cameron once commented that his wife had an ‘unconventional childhood’ because she went to a day school instead of a boarding school like everyone else. I think that proves your point about them living in a different world from the rest of us perfectly!
The majority of members of this Parliament have never had to undertake what most of the public consider to be a real job, all of the political parties are the same.
disgaceful