Posted by Hari on Tuesday, March 29, 2016 with No comments | Labels: Austerity, benefits, Big Society, budget cuts, inequality, the government, Tories
SOURCE TELEGRAPH: Iain
Duncan Smith resigns as Work and Pensions Secretary in protest at cuts to
disability benefits
Iain Duncan Smith has dramatically resigned from the
Government in protest at George Osborne's proposed cuts to benefits for the
disabled. The former Conservative leader said that plans to cut the benefits
paid to the disabled by more than £1 billion were a "compromise too far."
He added that they are "not defensible" when announced alongside a
budget that benefits higher earning taxpayers. Mr Duncan Smith also accused the
Chancellor of forcing through cuts to welfare for "political" rather
than national economic reasons. George Osborne had offered to delay planned
changes to disability benefits with sources saying they would be "kicked
into the long grass". However, the offer was not enough to prevent Mr
Duncan Smith, a former Conservative leader, from walking out of the Government.
He added: "I am unable to watch passively whilst certain policies are
enacted in order to meet the fiscal self imposed restraints that I believe are
more and more perceived as distinctly political rather than in the national
economic interest. "Too often my team and I have been pressured in the
immediate run up to a budget or fiscal event to deliver yet more reductions to
the working age benefit bill. There has been too much emphasis on money saving
exercises and not enough awareness from the Treasury, in particular, that the
government's vision of a new welfare-to-work system could not be repeatedly
salami-sliced." He made it clear in his letter than he believes the
Government should instead be focussing on reducing benefits for pensioners
which have largely been protected during the austerity drive.
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