I can’t believe that it was 31 Jan 2019 when I posted a video called “Disabled people deserve better” and, unfortunately, things still haven’t gotten any better for us. Indeed, the war against the sick and disabled has entered a new phase, given that the anti-migrant message isn’t cutting through as well as the Tories have hoped. With nothing to offer the ordinary citizens of the UK, the Tories have decided to scapegoat the sick and disabled again because they are cruel, cowardly and totally without conscience.
I would like to say that things might get better under an alternative government but Mr Kid Starver’s party seems to want to punish the sick and disabled for being the victims of circumstance. The rhetoric coming from the likes of Liz Kendall and Rachel Reeves is chilling, leaving the impression that the scapegoated vulnerable people of the UK would probably be better off under the Tories than under a government led by Tel Aviv Keith which is a horrible thought in its own right.
The UK is going to be having a General Election soon and the vulnerable people of the UK are going to have very little option in whom to vote for to improve our circumstances. We have little hope for our future whichever major political party takes the reins of government as they seem intent on punishing us for the mistakes both parties have made.
We understand that the Tories are hostile to the sick and disabled and that we will always be treated as third class citizens by them when they are in power but we now have an opposition party that says “you think you’re hard on the disabled? Hold our beer ‘cos you ain’t seen nothin’ yet”.
Disabled people deserve better treatment than this from a government that is meant to protect its citizens. If we had better support, perhaps more disabled people could enter the workplace and become so-called “productive members of society”. If we weren’t treated like criminals and fraudsters and forced to undergo humiliating assessments, we might become more able to cope with our disabilities, especially if those disabilities are of the poor mental health variety. If the services we rely on weren’t cut to the bone we might have the slightest chance of recovery or simply coping. If we were given hope we might not be so downtrodden and defeated. We certainly don’t need the further indignity of not being able to use our Personal Independence Payments for whatever aids our ability to live with our disability by having our cash payments replaced by a voucher scheme which will, in the long run, cost more to administrate than it’ll save, much like the constant disability benefit assessments.
To put things in terms politicians can understand – good, well-funded public services create happier and more productive citizens, disabled and non-disabled alike and, if you provide concrete improvements to people’s lives, give them hope, it’s a definite vote winner. The Prime Minister and party that delivers hope could stay in power indefinitely.
The current crop of politicians have to understand that the disabled vote is up for grabs and, in the current climate, could well help swing an election one way or another but to do that the parties have to offer something other than abuse and scapegoating of the sick and disabled. Offer us hope, offer us a future where we are no longer looked down upon and, more importantly, deliver that future. Disabled people deserve better and it’s about time we got it.
