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Anti Poverty Campaign for Disabled People 'surprises' Minister Margaret Hodge. On Friday 28th April, the Disabled People's Direct Action Network (DAN) presented its Anti Poverty Campaign to MP for Barking Margaret Hodge at a demonstration outside her surgery. Highlighting problems with the welfare reform paper that plans to get 1 million people off Incapacity Benefit, DAN activists strongly asserted: "The problem isn't in our attitude towards working. It lies in employers' reluctance to offer us jobs". DAN asked: "'Where are these jobs going to come from? Why would employers make the reasonable adjustments they need to make to recruit and retain disabled people when there is no useful anti-discrimination legislation forcing them to do so?" DAN demanded to know whether: "The Government will put the necessary money into the Access To Work Scheme to ensure adjustments are made and vigorously pursue discriminatory employers?" DAN activist Stewart Macloud presented a leaflet summarising the campaign to MP Hodge at the end of her surgery and raised concerns with the proposed reforms. He told the Minister that not enough emphasis is placed upon employers to make changes and questioned the quality of disability employment support services citing examples of Hounslow Disability Network who next week will have to lay off a deaf employee because the Access to Work scheme has refused to pay for the full cost of communicators. He also cited how a person with a learning difficulty working part time is currently being threatened with court action by a local authority because of rent arrears caused by a six-month delay in payment from the working tax credit office. MP Hodge said she was surprised by DAN's response to the reform as the disability groups she had spoken to had welcomed the changes. DAN pointed out that these groups are not accountable to our community and that many of them have their snouts stuck in the honey jar as they benefit directly from their participation in slave labour schemes such as Pathways to Work. She agreed that there was an issue with the quality of disability employment support and said that she would consider meeting with DAN if DAN writes to her requesting such a meeting. She then smiled politely and left. Sadly, as MP Hodge left she was delayed and inconvenienced by a DAN activist whose electric wheelchair battery had completely discharged at the exit of the surgery's car park. Whilst six officers of the Metropolitan Police were called by Hodge's staff to "assist" the activist out of the way others chanted: "Margaret Hodge-Podge, Margaret Hodge-Podge, Shame on you, shame on you, Give us real employment, give us real employment, Just like you, just like you!" Eventually she was driven briskly out of the car park. DAN made it clear that this is just the first of our forthcoming series of actions to highlight poverty amongst our community and emphasise the truth concerning the cruel and discriminatory benefits system which punishes people with impairments, far from rewarding laziness or the undeserving, as the Government would have people believe. *Please disseminate freely to all your politicians, groups, forums and individuals etc... FREEOURPEOPLE Kind-Regards Colin Revell, Hull and E. Riding of Yorkshire DAN representative and co-ordinator _________________________________________________________________ The new MSN Search Toolbar now includes Desktop search! http://join.msn.com/toolbar/overview ________________End of message______________________ This Disability-Research Discussion list is managed by the Centre for Disability Studies at the University of Leeds (www.leeds.ac.uk/disability-studies). Enquiries about the list administratione should be sent to [log in to unmask] Archives and tools are located at: www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/disability-research.html You can JOIN or LEAVE the list from this web page.