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Vanmala: It sounds as though your colleague in Nova Scotia is being a bit paranoid--there aren't enough case workers, in any country, for all disabled people on benefits be literally watched 24/7 via surveillance cameras! However, in most developed countries there are systems in place for covert surveillance of people suspected of benefits fraud, and these systems are often overzealous. In Britain for example there are ad campaigns encouraging people to report benefit fraud, and particularly with fluctuating or invisible conditions, that means false reports (and malicious reports) get made and are followed up. This might be done by covert surveillance, but may also be done by calling you in for a new physical exam. There is also the new series of "work-directed interviews" (I think that's the term) for people receiving ESA, which seem to be designed to catch you out in a contradictory statement or movement. This isn't unique to people with disabilities of course, anyone receiving state benefits could be on the receiving end of unwanted attention like this--it was certainly a feature of California state welfare policy back when I was an AFDC (parent benefit) recipient in the 80s, for example. When case workers made a home visit they would routinely check your closet for men's shoes or clothes that might indicate a boyfriend staying over (the assumption apparently is that poor women are all prostitutes as if we are sleeping with a man he must be giving us money... VERY insulting.) The TANF programmes that replaced AFDC are even worse now in many US states, collecting and storing information about drug and alcohol use, sexual history and so on, requiring attendance at classes that instruct you in state-compliant behaviour, and administering drug and alcohol testing as a condition for receiving benefits. Welcome to the wonderful world of poverty under neo-liberalism--not 24/7 surveillance but enough of it to keep you feeling nervous all the time. ________________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 list administration should be sent to [log in to unmask] Archives and tools are located at: www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/disability-research.html You can VIEW, POST, JOIN and LEAVE the list by logging in to this web page.