Latest news with #Grey-Thompson
The Independent
23-04-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Assisted dying coercion risk greater for disabled people – Tanni Grey-Thompson
Discrimination faced by disabled people could mean they are more likely to be coerced into an assisted death if a proposed law change goes ahead, Paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson has warned. The crossbench member of the House of Lords said people had told her they would want to end their own lives if they found themselves in her position. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill will 'fundamentally' change disabled people's relationship with society, Baroness Grey-Thompson also told a gathering in Westminster aimed at sharing the testimonies of people opposed to it. Proposals to change the law are not Government legislation, but are being sponsored by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater as they make their way through the Commons. The Bill has undergone significant changes aimed at safeguarding the proposed assisted dying service against abuse or exploitation, since it first succeeded in an initial Commons vote in November. The High Court safeguard has been dropped and replaced by expert panels, while the implementation period has been doubled to a maximum of four years for a service to be in place should the Bill pass into law. It is set to return for report stage on May 16 when MPs are expected to vote on further amendments. 'Low-level discrimination' against disabled people in society has 'risen remarkably' in recent months amid discussion of the Government's reforms to the welfare system, Lady Grey-Thompson told the gathering of parliamentarians and campaigners. She suggested this was indicative of wider societal judgements about disabled people, and could influence how the law would operate in practice. Sharing her experience after one assisted dying debate, the peer added: 'Some of you will have heard me say this before, but I was in central lobby, I came out of a debate the last time we were doing this. Somebody stopped me and said, 'If my life is like yours, I'd want to kill myself'.' 'So I'm really conscious of all these challenges that exist for disabled people,' she added. The crossbench peer said doctors and police are already unable to 'spot coercion in domestic abuse relationships'. She asked: 'So why is it they are going to suddenly be able to spot it in this? They're not. 'This fundamentally changes our relationship with society. Every disabled person who writes to me – and they do write quite a lot – is absolutely terrified about what this means for them.' Held in a parliamentary committee room, the meeting was called to give those opposed to the Bill, and who had not been called to speak during the scrutiny process, a chance to air their views. Actor Liz Carr, who has also campaigned against the Bill, said she and other disabled people were terrified by the prospect it would allow doctors to raise the issue of assisted dying with terminally ill patients as a treatment option. She said: 'When you are unwell, you go to the doctor, you go to the expert, and as confident that we like to think we are, as an all-encompassing, in-control, autonomous being, when a doctor tells you something might be a solution, you listen to them.' She said she did not believe this was an 'appropriate' option, adding: 'That is an abuse of power, and I believe that is a coercion.' 'The worst is that we choose it for ourselves, because there is no other option,' the campaigner later added.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Assisted dying coercion risk greater for disabled people – Tanni Grey-Thompson
Discrimination faced by disabled people could mean they are more likely to be coerced into an assisted death if a proposed law change goes ahead, Paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson has warned. The crossbench member of the House of Lords said people had told her they would want to end their own lives if they found themselves in her position. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill will 'fundamentally' change disabled people's relationship with society, Baroness Grey-Thompson also told a gathering in Westminster aimed at sharing the testimonies of people opposed to it. Proposals to change the law are not Government legislation, but are being sponsored by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater as they make their way through the Commons. The Bill has undergone significant changes aimed at safeguarding the proposed assisted dying service against abuse or exploitation, since it first succeeded in an initial Commons vote in November. The High Court safeguard has been dropped and replaced by expert panels, while the implementation period has been doubled to a maximum of four years for a service to be in place should the Bill pass into law. It is set to return for report stage on May 16 when MPs are expected to vote on further amendments. 'Low-level discrimination' against disabled people in society has 'risen remarkably' in recent months amid discussion of the Government's reforms to the welfare system, Lady Grey-Thompson told the gathering of parliamentarians and campaigners. She suggested this was indicative of wider societal judgements about disabled people, and could influence how the law would operate in practice. Sharing her experience after one assisted dying debate, the peer added: 'Some of you will have heard me say this before, but I was in central lobby, I came out of a debate the last time we were doing this. Somebody stopped me and said, 'If my life is like yours, I'd want to kill myself'.' 'So I'm really conscious of all these challenges that exist for disabled people,' she added. The crossbench peer said doctors and police are already unable to 'spot coercion in domestic abuse relationships'. She asked: 'So why is it they are going to suddenly be able to spot it in this? They're not. 'This fundamentally changes our relationship with society. Every disabled person who writes to me – and they do write quite a lot – is absolutely terrified about what this means for them.' Held in a parliamentary committee room, the meeting was called to give those opposed to the Bill, and who had not been called to speak during the scrutiny process, a chance to air their views. Actor Liz Carr, who has also campaigned against the Bill, said she and other disabled people were terrified by the prospect it would allow doctors to raise the issue of assisted dying with terminally ill patients as a treatment option. She said: 'When you are unwell, you go to the doctor, you go to the expert, and as confident that we like to think we are, as an all-encompassing, in-control, autonomous being, when a doctor tells you something might be a solution, you listen to them.' She said she did not believe this was an 'appropriate' option, adding: 'That is an abuse of power, and I believe that is a coercion.' 'The worst is that we choose it for ourselves, because there is no other option,' the campaigner later added.
Western Telegraph
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Western Telegraph
Assisted dying coercion risk greater for disabled people – Tanni Grey-Thompson
The crossbench member of the House of Lords said people had told her they would want to end their own lives if they found themselves in her position. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill will 'fundamentally' change disabled people's relationship with society, Baroness Grey-Thompson also told a gathering in Westminster aimed at sharing the testimonies of people opposed to it. Campaigners including actress Liz Carr and Baroness Grey-Thompson outside the Houses of Parliament (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Proposals to change the law are not Government legislation, but are being sponsored by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater as they make their way through the Commons. The Bill has undergone significant changes aimed at safeguarding the proposed assisted dying service against abuse or exploitation, since it first succeeded in an initial Commons vote in November. The High Court safeguard has been dropped and replaced by expert panels, while the implementation period has been doubled to a maximum of four years for a service to be in place should the Bill pass into law. It is set to return for report stage on May 16 when MPs are expected to vote on further amendments. 'Low-level discrimination' against disabled people in society has 'risen remarkably' in recent months amid discussion of the Government's reforms to the welfare system, Lady Grey-Thompson told the gathering of parliamentarians and campaigners. This fundamentally changes our relationship with society. Every disabled person who writes to me - and they do write quite a lot - is absolutely terrified about what this means for them Baroness Grey-Thompson She suggested this was indicative of wider societal judgements about disabled people, and could influence how the law would operate in practice. Sharing her experience after one assisted dying debate, the peer added: 'Some of you will have heard me say this before, but I was in central lobby, I came out of a debate the last time we were doing this. Somebody stopped me and said, 'If my life is like yours, I'd want to kill myself'.' 'So I'm really conscious of all these challenges that exist for disabled people,' she added. The crossbench peer said doctors and police are already unable to 'spot coercion in domestic abuse relationships'. She asked: 'So why is it they are going to suddenly be able to spot it in this? They're not. 'This fundamentally changes our relationship with society. Every disabled person who writes to me – and they do write quite a lot – is absolutely terrified about what this means for them.' When you are unwell, you go to the doctor... when a doctor tells you something might be a solution, you listen to them Liz Carr Held in a parliamentary committee room, the meeting was called to give those opposed to the Bill, and who had not been called to speak during the scrutiny process, a chance to air their views. Actor Liz Carr, who has also campaigned against the Bill, said she and other disabled people were terrified by the prospect it would allow doctors to raise the issue of assisted dying with terminally ill patients as a treatment option. She said: 'When you are unwell, you go to the doctor, you go to the expert, and as confident that we like to think we are, as an all-encompassing, in-control, autonomous being, when a doctor tells you something might be a solution, you listen to them.' She said she did not believe this was an 'appropriate' option, adding: 'That is an abuse of power, and I believe that is a coercion.' 'The worst is that we choose it for ourselves, because there is no other option,' the campaigner later added.
The Guardian
18-03-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Tanni Grey-Thompson among disability campaigners criticising ‘brutal' benefit cuts
Toxic rhetoric around benefit cuts has stirred up hatred against disabled people, Tanni Grey-Thompson has said, as campaigners warned the government's planned welfare changes were 'brutal and reckless'. Lady Grey-Thompson, a Paralympic champion and crossbench peer, said she had been contacted by disabled people saying they had been shouted at in the street by passersby telling them they were 'going to get their benefits cut'. 'There's some really horrible rhetoric around at the moment,' she said. 'It's not a great time for disabled people. And the worry is that this doesn't do the right things to get people into work. It's whether it could push people who are currently just about surviving into greater poverty or more need.' The TV presenter and disability advocate Sophie Morgan, who is paraplegic, said she saw no justification for the cuts and said the 'scapegoating of disabled people is not only toxic, it could be really fatal'. 'If history has taught us anything, these cuts will have the opposite effect of what the government seems to think they will have. It will push people out of work, it will cause more poverty,' she said. 'I don't think there's a single disabled person in the UK who won't be affected by this. But I think everyone should be worried – if the government can treat people with the highest needs in our community this way, what else could they possibly do? It's a very worrying question.' She added: 'There is this terrible misconception that disabled people just take, but actually by taking from us, you prevent us from being able to give – we want to be able to participate in life equally the same as anyone else, and that includes going to work.' The work and pensions secretary, Liz Kendall, on Tuesday announced benefit changes including tightening the eligibility rules for personal independence payments (Pip) and reviewing the assessment process, as well as cuts to health-related universal credit. Charities and disability advocate groups criticised the approach, saying the changes would 'drive more disabled people into poverty'. Mikey Erhardt, a campaigner at Disability Rights UK, said: 'After months of rumours, media speculation and spin, it is clear these reforms were not about supporting disabled people into work, but instead simply about making brutal and reckless cuts amounting to £5bn. 'Rising claims for Pip reflect not a problem with disabled people but rather reflect successive governments' failure to do even the bare minimum to create a more equitable society.' Paul Kissack, the chief executive of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said: 'A government that came to office pledging to end the moral scar of food bank use clearly should not be taking steps that could leave disabled people at greater risk of needing to use one.' He said 'enormous cuts' risked undermining some of the positive reforms announced by the government, such as the 'right to try guarantee' to help people back into work. The disabled activist Dermot Devlin said he was almost in tears as he watched Kendall's speech in the House of Commons on TV. 'I had to turn it off because it was too much. The fact that they were putting it across as good news when in fact anyone who is disabled knows it's anything but good news, it's absolutely devastating for our community,' he said. 'I don't know if it will affect me, but we don't know what the parameters are yet. It might not affect me now but it could next year. I'm just a bit lost for words.' Devlin, who has mucopolysaccharidosis type IV, also known as morquio syndrome, said he relied on Pip to help him cover the costs of the powered vehicle he uses to get around, and the mask he wears to help with his breathing while he sleeps. 'Public opinion is getting nasty towards disabled people. But Pip is needed for survival,' he said. 'You take Pip away and it's just going to push so many disabled people, including myself, deeper and deeper into poverty. 'I've never felt more pushed away from being a member of society.'
Yahoo
16-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Reeves has one big ally in slashing benefits: the public
A cottage industry has grown up on TikTok that has nothing to do with dancing or cats. Earnest-looking men and women explain to thousands of people willing to watch ways to 'pass' assessments for welfare benefits. You can spend hours scrolling through them. Uber receipts are, apparently, useful for showing that you find it difficult to walk outside. Takeaway bills show an inability to cook; grocery deliveries an inability to shop. It is seemingly important to explain that it takes you a long time to get into or out of the bath. Forgetting to go to the lavatory, or misremembering directions can also gain points. Viewers are urged to 'get a pen and paper and write this down'. We spend more on incapacity and disability benefits than defence. About 3.7 million people who are of working age receive health-related welfare – 1.2 million more than in 2020. If 400,000 of those people could find work, it would save £10 billion via higher tax revenues and lower benefits bills. GPs – who sign people off – are not occupational therapists and know little about work. One Conservative official I spoke to, who was formerly a government adviser, told me that 94 per cent of 'fit notes' were signed 'not fit'. Doctors deal with illness, not employment. Once people are off work, capability assessments are de minimis. As a House of Lords report revealed in January, 'there is a disincentive for claimants to apply for and accept work'. They languish at home and may receive a phone call every now and again – the moment the TikTok advice kicks in. Young people in particular too often move straight from education onto sickness benefits. The grinding logic of the need for reform is unarguable. That does not mean demonising those who need support getting back to work, or who are dealing with conditions that mean they are incapable of work. Those who suffer most from our present malaise are those who most need the payments – lost within an ever-increasing multitude of those who could work, but don't. The noise is drowning out the signal. Baroness Grey-Thompson has warned politicians to take care, linking the payment of disability benefits to the debate about assisted dying. 'If you are disabled and terminally ill and your benefits are cut, making life intolerable, it's obvious more people will feel forced down this route to end their lives early,' she said, linking the payment of disability benefits to the debate about assisted dying. Some in Labour are suffering their usual fits of conscience over the issue, unable to distinguish between 'values' and the practical reality. Continue as we are and the benefits bill will have risen to £100 billion by 2030. That is four times higher than the extra cash raised by the economy-sapping increases in National Insurance contributions. Imagine what a sliver of that money could do for schools and the health service. The public has had enough. Few want to return to the harsh language of 'scroungers' and Peter Lilley's 'I've got a little list of benefit offenders' to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan. But they do want action and what has been described to me by one person close to government as 'tough love'. New research from the Good Growth Foundation, a think tank, reveals that 60 per cent of the public believe that benefits provide too much support to people who don't want to work. The figure is only marginally lower for Labour voters. Benefit reform is, rightly, popular. This is not a right-left issue, it is a right-wrong one. 'Is it worth going back to work?,' said one Birmingham man interviewed for the research. 'People need to be given a liveable wage. £1,000 for sitting on my arse, or £1,050 for doing 40 hours a week?' Ill-health benefits are £400 a month higher than job-seeker benefits. 'Too often, people who want to work are written off by the welfare system.' said Praful Nargund, director of the GGF. 'Our research shows that the vast majority of those on sickness and disability benefits want to work but feel unable to do so. There is nothing progressive about social isolation.' The government has to lead, but business also has a role. Nargund suggests a NICs holiday for firms that help people off long term benefits and into work. In the 1970s a category of work called 'light duties' was a less daunting on-ramp back to the factory or office. We should find a 2025 equivalent. A 'right-to-try' approach would de-risk a return to work for those who fear a long term loss of support because they have attempted an often difficult move back to employment. They should be applauded, not penalised. Benefit reform is the latest test for a Labour government that has – usefully – a little more spring in its step. Difficult decisions are easier when confidence is flowing – as it is in the party's upper echelons. Ukraine, higher defence spending and cuts in international aid are all popular with voters. The Left of the party is in retreat as Keir Starmer pushes rightward in the hunt for a political prospectus that works. Number 10 has also spotted something on the right which brings them a few smiles of satisfaction. Kemi Badenoch is facing a painful political squeeze as the government eats her lunch on benefits reform, a smaller state and a retooling of the NHS. Even Robert Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary, had to admit that the Conservatives should have rid the UK of the 'world's largest quango', NHS England. It took a Labour Secretary of State for Health, Wes Streeting, to do so. The big target, though, is still there for the Opposition leader, who is making a major speech this week on the future of Conservatism. The economy contracted in January and 'growth' is the gnawing failure that the government has little prospect of reversing, benefits reform or not. Its lack of understanding of market dynamics and Milton Friedman principles have left it seeking state-led solutions where there are none. Capitalism has one talent – creating wealth. It should be allowed to do so. The modern welfare state came into being after the Second World War, but its Labour founders would not recognise it now. This is the time for a reset, for a clearly set and enforced requirement for individuals to be supported on a path to work that is good for them and good for the country. The Labour Party is the party of work. Or it is nothing. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
