- Target:
- Sir Gus O'Donnell
- Region:
- United Kingdom
DWP Tribunal Reconsideration Project with Her Majesty's Courts (& now Tribunal Service). Incapacity BenefitS Transition Project. DBD420 "Look again" at DLA Mobility/Care +/or attendance allowance Project.
It is time automatic rejection of claims by some or all of DWP / Benefits & Credits assessment officers ceased. It is time appeals be facilitated and not frustrated to avoid descendants & taking of responsibility by the Departments. Reconsideration erodes rights, wastes time to avoid legal challenges, and all these practices combined deny many vulnerable (including non-disabled/incapacitated) claimants and families access to their lawful entitlements.
The emphasis and responsibility for correct assessment lies with DWP & Benefits and Credits, not with the claimant. Automatic award at lowest levels ("chancing the arm") is equally deplorable. A government which should protect the vulnerable should not itself endanger them to exploitation, nor itself exploit such persons / families.
Civil Servants are paid well to do a job well, not to achieve 'statistics' and being able to place of quantity and lip-service over quality must cease. If quality increases then the Unions will be able to further justify the need to stop cuts in the Civil Service.
Get it right first time. A maxim is fine, but the culture must adopt and accept, not merely recite it.
"We, the undersigned, call upon Sir Gus O'Donnell and Her Majesty's Civil Service to ensure that vulnerable persons are not wrongly denied lawful entitlements, are able to access appeals, are free to reject reconsiderations if they so choose & understand, are not frustrated in Judicial Review attempts, and to remove the practice of transferring the responsibility to other organisations/partners and customers themselves.
This to ensure Customer's needs and entitlements are met and unfair dubious practices cease. Decision-makers should be accountable for their decisions. Change the civil service ethos. Protect, rather than exploit the vulnerable. Customers not "knowing the rules" must not be disadvantaged.
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The DWP 'Projects' petition to Sir Gus O'Donnell was written by daniel hillary and is in the category Government at GoPetition.