Amongst all the noise, the hype, the Social Media and Mainstream Media about Brexit, the EU, Independence and Trump there are real issues that need to be addressed right now! There is absolutely NO…
Amongst all the noise, the hype, the Social Media and Mainstream Media about Brexit, the EU, Independence and Trump there are real issues that need to be addressed right now! There is absolutely NO…
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MUNGUIN'S NEW REPUBLIC 
Something a wee bit fishy about the bit where Labour are the only one’s helping.
I’ve just been through a similar situation and there are procedures in place. No one ends up on the street if they’re unintentionally homeless and that’s down to the Scottish government legislation.
I feel for the person at the heart of the story but the system kicks in when it has to at the last minute. I agree that it’s scary and, for me, very stressful as you live through it, but looking back, I can see how it all works.
There are literally thousands of people in this situation in Scotland at any one time and although the bureaucrats seem indifferent, the system works. Individual MP’s and SMP’s have no way of intervening in individual cases like this but it’s not because they don’t care.
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No I’m not saying that they don;t care. I am saying we need to change things so that people with multiple health problems don’t get this stress added to their already heavy stress load.
I we can afford to bomb other countries, we can afford to put sick people into some sort of housing as soon as they are informed of their landlord’s intention to remove them.
I’m not blaming the individual MPs/MSPs. I say the system needs looking at.
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I agree, it’s about priorities and that’s why I support independence, so we can make those decisions.
The thing that stuck in my craw in the original article was the party political point that Labour were the only one’s who cared. Simply not true.
The SNP did do something about it with new legislation, if that needs looking at again, fair enough.
Anyway, this subject needs airing, so well done.
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Yes. Priorities. And maybe OUR priorities wouldn’t be Trident and a war in Syria.
Thanks. I was happy to share this story. The more people who see it the better.
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I recognised Alison from her increasingly desperate tweets though Rod didn’t give her twitter name. This wouldn’t be right if she was a No voting, Brexiteer who thought Trump was ace. But she’s defi aye on twitter who’s artwork was on front page of National. Mr Malky has tweeted Peter Murrell about her. I don’t have a twitter account but would those who do consider tweeting Peter and/or Nicola. This is NOT RIGHT.
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As you say, it’s not about politics. It’s about people.
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Is social security devolved?
Can Hollyrood overrule the DWP?
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Small parts are about to be devolved. I don’t think Holyrood can overrule the DWP.
But it’s an idiotic system, where a very small amount of social security is devolved. I imagine it will mean duplication.
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Is this not the reason we want independence so we can help and care about people forced into situations like this if the scottish goverment and all the rest of the scottish parties sit back and do nothing but pass the buck whats the point? what happened to scotland building a better caring society there must be someone in power to help this person or is it the same old rhetric spouting about a caring society and nothing ever changes .
For CHRISTS SAKE WILL SOMEONE IN AUTHORITY DO SOMETHING?
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Exactly. Get the law changed so that sick people (any people, but more importantly those who already have a burden to carry) don’t have to go through this.
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I am afraid that what Alison has been subjected to is far too prevalent in the modern world and has little to do with independence.
The people responsible for organising support structures in both the public and private sectors all go to the same management training school where they are taught the benefits of silo management.
This is a system that is designed to improve overall budget control but unfortunately leads to a situation where the left hand doesn’t know and isn’t allowed to know what the right hand is doing (or not doing).
I have met a few others who are in her situation and it is a scandal that when life or death are at stake that they are abandoned in this manner.
Due to cuts in social budgets,it appears no longer possible for anyone to own responsibility for individual cases or even if they do,don’t have sufficient time to deal with them and as a consequence we are going to increasingly see people dying on our streets through neglect.
Charities can provide short term measures to help but most people need long term support in order to regain their health (mental and physical) and become productive members of society again.
Who cares?
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Clearly, we do, bringiton!
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Tris
Will repost and while there are supposed to be procedures in place this sounds like a disaster. Not returning calls is a disgrace, it happens all too often now as no one is willing to take responsibility and I really fear for this person I really do. I don’t understand why shelter would not get involved as that is not my previous experience of them and if the response from elected reps has been that poor that is a disgrace and needs to be challenged now. I can’t stand the shitty services that far too many receive across the board in this country. Occasionally I will get someone come through my line at work who has been passed pillar to post. What I do is take their name and number and email if they have one, I find out who they are trying to reach, I pass on the correct numbers etc and follow it up with an email saying the person will get in touch with them that day. I usually copy in my boss to the email and their boss and then call the person back to give them all the details, pisses people right off I can tell you but I worked in homelessness for 4 years and saw too many people being messed around and it is just not good enough.
Hopefully this post will go through as my post yesterday didn’t for some reason.
Bruce
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Bravo Bruce.
We MUST do better with people who need help. I know it’s hard. I know staff are cut to the minimum and I know how hard everyone has to work… and it will get worse. But we have to do a better job on this.
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A friend of mine works for a UK not-for-profit care service that takes on council care contracts. There is most definitely a race to the bottom here. Competing service providers are taking on contracts that are 100% guaranteed to make a loss if the job is done properly, even assuming minimum wage employees. It’s quite shocking, when you think about it. The councils, of course, know full well that bids are unrealistically low because they need to do due diligence. They’re strapped for cash in turn, though, so are forced to give the work to agencies that bid low to get the work. Obviously, they can’t then deliver the care package.
This isn’t a reflection of the workers at the care agencies – they simply don’t have the time in their schedule. The problem is that successive governments have refused to pay what this actually costs. The free market can’t solve that any more than a system of state care could.
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There is, I think, a whole post somewhere on the inappropriateness of privatising stuff like this. I reminded of the care homes for the elderly that were privatised way back, in all of the countries in the UK, and how, the one of the companies concerned enriched its directors by selling off the properties and leasing them back. The trouble was they needed very occupancy to make a profit, and something like 95% to break even.
Unfortunately, you simply cannot guarantee that level of occupancy. They went broke (with some multi-millionaire directors) and left the various governments to pick up the tab.
We need to face facts. Older people are here top stay. And it’s not like the government hasn’t have 65-70 years notice that they were coming. They didn’t drop out of the sky. And almost none of them are immigrants!!!!
We’ve always got money for wars though…
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https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/nov/17/day-in-the-life-of-a-care-worker-zero-hours-contracts?CMP=share_btn_tw
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What Illy askes.
Scotland’s independence isn’t the holy grail; it will be reality.
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Well, let’s make it soon. The Financial Times is predicting a further black hole in UK finances of around £100 billion.
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