Category: Cookery

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The truth about Covid 19 self employment and disability.

Dear readers, I hope that you are all safe and as well as you can be. Many of us are trying to self isolate which is hard when you don’t have enough money to do an online shop and even if you can afford to do this there’s no open delivery slots.
Nearly a million people have applied for universal credit in the past fortnight as a result of people loosing their jobs or having to give up their self employment as a because of the Covid 19 pandemic.
However thousands of people have had trouble obtaining the correct ID needed to apply for Universal Credit. As a result they were told to telephone the hotline and make an appointment with a Universal Credit advisor.
Thousands of people tried to follow their advice but were unable to contact an advisor because the telephone lines were too busy and thousands have given up trying to apply.
DWP Officials have said that they’re working “flat out” to help people get support, however what they say and do are often two different stories.
The reality is that new claimants are not feeling supported and have been left with little or no help.
The government have refused to scrap the five week wait for universal credit telling new claimants that they have to apply for a loan from the DWP to help them. It sounds good however these loans have to be paid back often dragging people into more hardship.
There was a warning on Wednesday that 20% of small businesses could fold in the next month due to the collapse in consumer demand, despite unprecedented government intervention to support jobs.
Yet the truth is that there is no support for self employed people having had to give up their self employment or put it on hold.
The governments response that they might be able to get a payment in June is inadequate and it hasn’t given them any security at all.
Having no income until June will have a devastating effect upon them, most will be hungry, many will be at risk of loosing their homes.
Being quarantined at home is awful for those of us unable to buy food and living in
fuel poverty. Every day is a struggle and more help needs to be given unconditionally.
Loans given by the government that have to be paid back to the DWP are unjust and cruel, most have paid into the system so that they could get help if they needed it. That’s how it used to work, it isn’t called social security for no reason. It used to provide security for those in need. Instead people are being made to pay back money that was rightfully theirs in the first place.
And its even worse for disabled people.
Many disabled people have been given very little information on the risks that they face or how they should mitigate those.
They can’t practice social distancing when you have care workers coming in and out of their houses.
Those living independently on direct payments haven’t been allocated any personal protective equipment or the funding to purchase it so are forced to go without, putting themselves and their carers at risk.
Most have no funding to offer sick pay, this results in a lack of income for their PAs
Which also puts themselves and their carers in an awful situation.
Within the new Coronavirus bill lies legislation that keeps disabled people living safely at home has now been removed.
The government has made changes to the Care Act 2014 which remove the legal duty on local authorities to provide care, except where not providing it would breach people’s human rights.
This could wipe out most of adult social care – with no guarantee it will ever be replaced.
Whilst people are saying that the Covid 19 outbreak has brought people together this isn’t happening for many disabled people. They’re being abandoned by the government with no care at all.
We all need to be talking about this and holding the government to account for their actions towards disabled people and the self employed.

Yesterday I took a walk around Ashton and spoke to some of the people that I’ve helped and are still helping.
Most are struggling, all of them are worried about catching Covid 19. I did what I could do to help, but I feel completely useless at the moment.
Little trips to the shops is our only option whilst trying to keep to the social distancing rules which are still being ignored by so many.
I understand that its hard to judge the distance correctly and supermarkets and shops have been really good at ensuring that people keep to the social distancing rules.
Please keep to the rules folks, whilst some people think that they’re invincible many of us aren’t. And don’t get me started on the conspiracy theorists posts. They can cause so much damage.
Above all else keep safe, feel free to email me if you want someone to talk to, because I am thinking of you all.

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A huge thank you to everyone that supports and has supported my blog and campaign.

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The Ugly Truth About UNIVERSAL CREDIT.

Dear readers its Thursday and most of us are on lockdown.

I did take a walk down to Ashton but I was unable to hand much out food wise because I have no spare cash, none at all but I did the best that I could do given the circumstances.

I realise that most of you are probably stressed and/ or worried about catching Covid 19 and are trying to keep away from people as much as possible, but its nearly impossible because we can’t afford to do one big shop for the week etc because universal credit prevents this.

Universal Credit is being touted at the moment as being the best thing ever, that it’ll help all self employed and previously employed people and that it will be of great benefit to them.

Claim universal credit and you’ll be ok!! But it’ll take at least five weeks to process and if you take a loan from us you have to pay it back.

The truth is that as of yesterday half a million people were attempting to apply for universal credit and many of them didn’t have the correct ID. They were then told to phone up the DWP using the universal credit hotline to make an appointment.

The truth is that the system couldn’t cope, too many people were calling and many have given up because they cant get through to speak to a DWP advisor who could hep them to proceed with their claim.

Universal credit is responsible for thousands of children and their parents being hungry and going without meals, adequate clothing.

It’s also responsible for many people becoming homeless. Many disabled people have given up with the system because its so stressful.

We must never, ever forget this cruelty bestowed to us by a cruel and uncaring government.

Another alternative was given to disabled people via Martin Lewis. He advised disabled people to apply for ESA not realising that its notoriously difficult to claim and most people are rejected upon applying so they have to appeal and then take it to a tribunal.

Thousands of people will now see and hopefully understand how complicated and heartless the DWP regime is.

Self employed people have been informed that they won’t get any help until the end of May. This will be far too late for most people.
Many will be close to loosing their homes.
Many will be hungry and the government doesn’t care one bit.

You see myself and other campaigners have been protesting and campaigning against this cruel, heartless system since its conception.

Many of us have been called scroungers, lazy, work shy and we must all get a job.

I suspect that some of these people will now be trying to struggle through the system as I type this, maybe they’ll realise how cruel the system is now.

Myself and other campaigners have lost count of how many people have died as a result of this sadistic, inhumane system. We’ve cried countless tears and mourned many losses.

We also worry about our children and young people because their struggle will be even harder than ours.

I’ve recorded so many awful situations in this blog, most of them heartbreaking, and now on top of this will be the deaths of people from Covid 19 struggling to cope at home after being told that they’re not a priority for help.

I really don’t recognise this country anymore, it used to be much better than this even during the hard times but I thank everyone thats campaigning for a better future.

Please can I ask you to take all of the Covid 19 Coronavirus information seriously. I know that it’s definitely not easy.

One day I hope that things will be better for us all.

Keep strong and I will continue to update my blog on a regular basis.

Please read, like, share, tweet and email my blog.

I campaign and blog with no budget at all and I’m not funded by anyone. If you would like to donate towards keeping the campaign and the blog going please click on the menu button at the top and there’s a donate button there.

A huge thank you to everyone that does support the campaign and blog. Thank you so much.

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, Damien Green, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island

The government needs to reverse all sanctions and reinstate ESA and PIP payments immediately due to the coronavirus Covid 19 outbreak.

Dear readers and supporters I hope that you are coping the best that you can during this very uncertain and worrying time.

It’s ok for the government to say self isolate when you have no food and many of the local food banks have shut their doors due to the coronavirus. They’re finding it hard to hand do their work because they can’t source any food to hand out and supermarkets have understandably put restrictions on purchases.

As I was waiting for Gordon to arrive with the food parcels I had a conversation with a man that I’ve spoken about before. He ran up to me saying ‘Thank God you’re here because everywhere else is shut’ I reassured him that I will do my best to help for as long as I can.

He told me about his struggles trying to get help, saying ‘It’s OK for organisations and councils to say phone us or email them. I don’t have the ability to do that. I’m sanctioned because I lost my mobile phone and I missed a text telling me to attend an appointment’

I asked him if he was coping and he told me that he wasn’t really. He’s been given an old mobile phone that doesn’t have good access to the Internet and anyway he can’t afford to buy any credit.

I asked him to register his new number with the DWP by going into the Jobcentre and to let them know that he hasn’t got any access to the Internet. I also asked him if he can also ask about his sanction to see if anything could be done to help him.

Sadly there are so many more people finding themselves in the same position as he is in. Many are also stuck in limbo awaiting decisions for ESA and PIP appeal and tribunal decisions. They too are struggling with little or no financial assistance and now find themselves feeling very vulnerable and left behind.

I’ve asked the DWP via Twitter if they can reverse all sanctions and reinstate all ESA and PIP payments immediately. Extremely vulnerable people need to have the means to survive. Sadly not enough people are taking this seriously maybe because its not happening to them.

Just ask yourself if you could cope in this time of crisis with no income at all. Sat in the cold with no access to help.

So we are left with a barely skeleton service given by local support organisations, food banks have had to shut, doctors surgeries are mainly only accepting telephone appointments, libraries have shut and thousands of people are very worried about how they were survive. They’re also very worried about catching coronavirus (Covid 19)

Schools are shutting their doors to all pupils except children of keyworkers and vulnerable children.

Whilst I agree with the closure of schools the government needs to be much clearer about the voucher system that they’re supposed to be putting into place.

It’s also extremely difficult to source food because selfish hoarders are stripping the shelves of most food products. The supermarkets are supposed to be implementing strict rules so let’s hope that this will help.

Please remember to follow full hygiene protocols, this is very important. Check on your friends amd neighbours to see if they’re OK.

I want all my readers to know that I’m here for you if you want to chat, feel free to email me or follow me on social media.

Together we can be stronger and we will get through this.

Please read, share, tweet and email my blog.

I have a donate button at the top and side of this blog post for anyone who would like to donate.

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Emergency measures for prepaid energy meters now released.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-agrees-measures-with-energy-industry-to-support-vulnerable-people-through-covid-19

Many thanks to everyone that pushed for this in Parliament. After being a complete pain they finally listened and measures have now been put into place.

A huge thanks to everyone that shared my blog post concerning this.

I’m also hoping to be able to make some bread for my neighbours that are really struggling to feed themselves and their families.

If anyone sees any plain flour please could send some my way. I have some yeast but I’d like to make them enough bread to keep going. Thank you so much.

Please read, share, tweet and email my blog.

I run this blog and the campaign with a zero budget. For anyone wanting to donate there’s a donate button at the top of the page and the side.

A huge thank you to everyone that has and does support my blog.

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Prepaid energy top up and Coronavirus. How do you top up your prepaid energy meters? IMPORTANT.

Dear readers I’ve been chasing down all the major energy companies on Twitter and asking them what their emergency provisions are for people unable to go to a shop to top up an energy card or key.

It’s a very important issue because so many of us, myself included are stuck on prepaid meters. If we don’t top up we get cut off and then what are we supposed to do?

Are we expected to just put up with being cut off from everything or is there help out there?

So to find out I started tweeting the major energy companies straight away. It was extremely eye opening to see that so many people didn’t even think about this being a problem. On the other hand many people were concerned and have shared my tweets.

So far these are the responses, the response from British Gas has to be the worst. The best response so far has to be from Bulb Energy. EDF came second in both response time and gave a decent answer to my question.

Listed below are all the responses that I’ve had so far. If I get anymore responses I shall add them to this blog post.

EDF

Hi Charlotte, thanks for getting in touch. The current advice from Public Health England for people who are self-isolating is to ask friends, family members or delivery services to carry out tasks such as getting groceries, medications or other shopping. These tasks would include the topping up of non-smart prepay energy meters. In circumstances where this is not possible, we have existing measures in place to make sure ]supply will continue in the short term. We are able to preload keys and cards with credit that can be collected by a customer or someone that is helping them from a local shop or alternatively can be delivered in the post. Any credit provided will be collected back at a suitable rate agreed with the customer. We also operate a friendly non disconnection policy on most meters, this means that if a customer runs out of credit after certain hours the electricity will not go off until 9am the next day. The operates between the hours of Monday to Friday 6pm to 9am, Saturday from 6pm, anytime on a Sunday, until 9am Monday, anytime on a bank holiday, until 9am the next day. Many thanks

BRITISH GAS

Hi Charlotte, customers may have enough emergency credit to last while they’re self-isolating at home. If they think they will run out, they should contact us to discuss their circumstances. We will work with them to find a solution. Thanks, Charlie

BULB

Hi Charlotte – This is a valid concern, we’ve advised prepay members to top up extra. If that’s not possible due to self-isolation or other potential issues we have a supply of keys/cards preloaded with credit. This is a new situation for us so our policy may evolve with time – M

Hi Lou – The preloaded key/card system comes with credit and is intended to help those who can’t have others top up for them. We’re following latest government policy and advice to ensure our own actions are up to date with developments – M

CENTRICA

Hi, you may have enough credit to last you while your self-isolating at home. If you think you’ll run out of credit, contact us to discuss your circumstances and we’ll work with you to find a solution. Thanks, Leanne

Hi Charlotte, we’ll continue to ensure customers get the help and support they need. If you think you’ll run out of credit, contact us to discuss your circumstances and we’ll work with you to find a solution.

E-ON

SCOTTISH POWER.

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All DWP face to face interviews cancelled as of this morning.

Well at least it appears that the DWP have at last seen sense and have cancelled face to face appointments this morning.

If you are unsure or the DWP hasn’t messaged you yet please contact them to confirm this. It’s always good to double check.

If you have still been asked to attend your appointment please let me know.

Now let’s see if sanctions are lifted.

I’ll keep you updated as further news comes to light.

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Coronavirus sees DWP halt face-to-face sickness and disability benefit assessments – Mirror Online

Coronavirus sees DWP halt face-to-face sickness and disability benefit assessments – Mirror Online
— Read on www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/coronavirus-sees-dwp-halt-face-21698775.amp

Today the DWP has announced that it will be stopping all face to face medical assessments temporarily, I suspect that they will be reinstating them as soon as the crisis ends.

There is no mention of any stoppages regarding face to face appointments, job searching and sanctions. Nor have the DWP been clear in their advice to any benefit claimants.

It is not fair to expect any person be sanctioned whilst we are facing this crisis, nor is it fair to expect anyone to endure already being sanctioned through this crisis.

These are people with already compromised immune systems due to lack of adequate food, heat and they certainly cant afford to buy loo rolls or stock up on anything.Please keep donating to your local food bank because its going to be increasingly difficult for them to access food, toiletries, nappies and baby milk.

Whilst the focus is still on the over 70’s please remember that people with compromised immune systems, disabled people and people with Coronavirus will still be at home isolated.

Because the government isn’t testing the public we just don’t know how many people are actually ill with Coronavirus at home, or are forced into work because they can’t afford to not go into work.

Please look out for each other and check on your friends and neighbours.

More updates as they are released.

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A huge thank you to everyone that supports the campaign and my blog.