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DLA is top trending on Twitter

Damon Rose Damon Rose | 16:02 UK time, Tuesday, 22 June 2010

Gosh. Interesting to note that is 'top trending' on Twitter in the United Kingdom, right now. For those not familiar with the geeky terminology, it means that it's one of the most talked-about subjects on the world's biggest electronic forum.

The budget has been and gone and the anxieties, celebrations and analysis of how it has impacted on disabled people, is happening on a mass scale on the internet right now.

The headline is that George Osborne is looking to decrease the amount they pay out to DLA claimants. In 2013, he aims to replace the current eligibility form filling with an interview based medical assessment.

The allowance was originally designed to help with the extra living costs one has as a disabled person, and was conceived during the last Conservative government's reign. Proof of receiving DLA is often used as an unofficial easy passport to other services you may be entitled to. Presumably advocacy organisations won't be able to help clients claim for benefits in quite the same way from 2013 if a direct personal assessment is the way forward.

Have you ever seen a disability related topic trending on Twitter before? Me either.

Comments

  • Comment number 1.

    It's odd that we haven't seen anyone from any of the Disability organisations interviewed on the news channels about it. Or maybe the media don't see how serious it is to us?

  • Comment number 2.

    "The budget has been and gone and the anxieties, celebrations and analysis of how it has impacted on disabled people,"

    Celebrations?

    Apparently so many people are clicking to read about DLA twitter is currently over capacity (just let me pretend people care about us, OK? I want to imagine that twitter isn't over capacity just because it's a day ending in "y").

  • Comment number 3.

    I've not heard of DLA being properly discussed anywhere yet (outside of Twitter). Fingers crossed Channel 4 news might cover it - they're usually more detailed than [cough] the ´óÏó´«Ã½.

  • Comment number 4.

    Nowhere is there mention of how this will affect disabled children receiving DLA and their carers ? I thought Mr Cameron was Pro- disability and understood the difficulties of caring for and living with disability !

  • Comment number 5.

    Lots of scenarios in the various papers on "how the budget will affect you" - the Grauniad had the usual rainbow scene of multiethnicity to illustrate, but not a single mention of how disabled people are affected.

    Not a peep. It could be because the effects on individuals of the DLA review will be on a case - by - case basis, but it was difficult to even find a mention of it in my papers.

  • Comment number 6.

    This DLA assesment is an insult to the already working proffesionals that reffer the individual for DLA in the first place.

    As for them reducing the back dateing of monies from 3 months to 1 month it is a bit rediculous especially in some cases it takes social workers up to 5 months to help individuals get there benifits sorted out.

  • Comment number 7.

    Maybe the ´óÏó´«Ã½ should come up with a realistic documentary in to the way many on DLA live. And avoiding the ones with drug abuse issues which we have all been over whelmed with. In the past decades.

    But more focus towards those that have made the efforts to fight forward but still face the stigma of society as a whole.

  • Comment number 8.

    We all thought Mr.Camereon was pro-disability but the reality HAS out-stripped the truth! What is gaulling is the one government quango that should have been kicked into the long grass FIRST is that private firm ATOS for all its errors but guess whos going to get the contract for doing the medical examinations of all DVLA? You guessed correct, ATOS! Tell me please, what are people supposed to do when when:

    1. You are medically assed BY A NURSE? A NURSE IS NOT A DOCTOR!

    2. You are told you are `fit for work' when you have CANCER? And are TERMINALLY ILL!

    3. you are told you can walk when you HAVE NO LEGS? BECAUSE YOU HAVE A WHEELCHAIR AND THIS APPLYS TO USING STICKS TO LEAN UPON!

    4. You are assessed by an ATOS doctor who says that you have limited capability, but then THEY ARE OVER-RIDDEN BY ATOS PEN-PUSHERS and you are now `fit for work'? WHEN YOU HAVE A PROGRESSIVE SPINE CONDITION THAT NOW MAKES YOU DOUBLY INCONTINENT!

    5. In fact, YOUR JUST FIT FOR WORK REGUARDLESS! AND THERE ARE NO EMPLOLYERS WHO WILL HIRE YOU BECAUSE NOT ONLY DO THEY HAVE TO MAKE REASONALBE ADJUSTMENTS BY LAW, YOU NOW ALSO `SMELL'......
    Lets send our incontinance pads to 10 Downing street.....

  • Comment number 9.

    D.V.L.A.= DISABLED VERY LIVID ALLOWANCE !

  • Comment number 10.

    The fact is that DLA costs the Government £11 Billion annually to administer. I have not seen a breakdown of who-gets-what but obviously there is an administrative cost involved and that is what they are aiming to reduce.

  • Comment number 11.

    It should be called a disabling allowance or compensation because that is what it really is. It is not being discussed everywhere Twitter isn't everywhere..... there is no way you could do it in-depth as Twits can only use a limited amount of text. The DLA form is many PAGES long.... One-off medical if disabled then all the allowances for disability they automatically get. I think most deaf should NOT get it. They should be given vouchers or allowance to pay for support instead. An interpreter costs £30- £250 an HOUR (depending if you are in London living it up, or out in the sticks), that has to be better value than 17 quid or whatever on the DLA which is a non allowance that doesn't address any need, and bluddy pathetic compensation, I am sure lawyers could do us a lot better than that.

  • Comment number 12.

    RADAR has said on their notice board that they have found that the amount for all of us who are working age the amount of money that is being payed in DLA is just a paultry 6 billion. If Georgus George has staited via Disability Bitch that in real terms DLA has risen 4 fold in the past 18 years, THEN EXPLAIN TO US WHY THE NHS HAS DOUBLED TO 189 BILLION? IN THE PAST,WHAT, 3???? Could it be down to all the financial
    waste LIKE`ministerial limosines' for directors and cheif executives and WAGES THAT ARE 4 TIMES THE AMOUNT OF THE PM? AND WASTING EXCESSIVE MONIES BUYING FROM THAT BLOODY NHS CATALOUGE WHERE EVERYTHING IS 4-6 TIMES THE INFLAITED PRICE? As for the Government spending 11 Billion on admistraition, then DOCTOR, HEAL THY SELF. NOT `OUR PROBLEM' FOLKS! A whitch-hunt and hiding to know where. And IT WILL COST A FORTUNE TO PROVE ABSOULUTLY NOTHING VIA THE PRIVATLY OWNED QUANGO ATOS - YEAH! NOW, WHO HAS `SHARES' IS THE QUESTION UMMMM.....?

  • Comment number 13.

    OH and its NOT COMPENSATION its DISABILILTY LIVING ALLOWANCE MEANING ITS PAYED for such servaces as CARE and GARDENING and CLEANING and SMALL ITEMS OF EQUIPTMENT such as TOUCH KETTLES,WAVE-OVER OPENING BINS,TOUCH CAR-OPENERS, JAR OPENERS, GRAB STICKS,FOOD PROCESSORS,KITCHEN AID MIXERS, infact ANYTHING THAT HELPS US TO `LIVE' not WHOOPEE, IVE WON THE LOTTERY AND IM OFF DOWN THE PUB!

  • Comment number 14.


    Please read to this article in the Guardian Comment section, and ask your readers to reply in the thread below the article. This will keep the DLA issue in the public consciousness.

  • Comment number 15.

    DLA is probably being talked about in the same vein as the term benefit scroungers. The new government seem hell bent on making disability an issue and fudging the unemployed and the disabled in one catagory with the idea of making the catagory one and the same.
    People love something to b*tch about, Twitter is the new way of doing it thats all, along with the ´óÏó´«Ã½s HYS where regular commentators think nothing of tearing into those less fortunate than them health wise.
    DLA is incredibly hard to get, I am supposedly eligable but after a moving of goal posts in the 90s I have not bothered laying myself bare again to all and sundry. Even disabled people have some dignity and pride, and personally I would walk over hot coals than claim that garbage again.

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