Sunday 13 March 2016

The blight of austerity



13 March 2016

An open letter to Mr Osborne & Mr Hunt

I thought it would be good to write to you both during budget week, to help you with the reality and impact of your decisions.  I do this because I don't think you really understand the situation you are creating, as you will never go through what I am going through. 

I am 51 years old and have worked all my life. I am currently in hospital battling a rare blood cancer. During the two weeks I have been in hospital there has not been a single day where there has been the full number of staff. The set numbers are 5 trained staff and 3 HCA's. Yesterday there were only 2 trained staff and 1 HCA. Despite being so understaffed, these 3 dedicated professionals worked their socks off to make sure patients were not too affected by the lack in numbers. They were fantastic and deserve a medal. They were smiley and upbeat every time I pressed my call bell. Each time I did this I apologised because I knew how busy they were but they just brushed it off with a cheery "no worries, how can I help?"

Just before I became ill with neutropenic sepsis I had the paperwork through to apply for PIP as my DLA is coming to an end. The form arrived on the 8 March but was dated 1 March. I can't help but think that is a cynical attempt to push people out of time to apply. Getting back to the application. I am worried sick that I will lose some or all of this vital benefit to me. DLA has enabled me to continue to work and I am scarred I may end up having to give up work because of a lack of supportive benefit to keep me there. 

I work full time in a secondary school and I see the decimation caused by austerity. We have been pruned so severely and so have all the supportive services around us. It is almost making the system unmanageable. My school has a much higher proportion of young people with challenging lives. Much has been in the media recently about the importance of mental health and children and young people. My experience is its almost impossible to get the Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service to even take a referral yet alone give a service. The same is true for Social Services who often expect us as a school to do what they should be doing. 

So while I lay in my hospital bed I worry that I will become too expensive a patient. I worry that when I need help there will not be sufficient staff numbers to treat me well enough in order to maintain my dignity and respect. I worry  that I will not get my PIP and will have to give up work and I am deeply concerned for the future of Education and the NHS.

I am not an economist or a brilliant academic but it seems to me there is a simple solution. Why will you not consider putting up tax and/or national insurance by a penny or two for everyone? I would happily pay more tax to protect the important institutions of the NHS and Education. I do not understand why you fail to do this time and time again. You continue to cut but do nothing to put more into the system. You give tax breaks to those with more money and take away or make more difficult disability benefits. You are both called Right Honourable. I do not see what is right or honourable about what you are doing. It seems it's all about keeping you in government rather than doing the right thing. 

I wait with dread for the outcome of the budget but write in the hope of appealing to your humanity. Please stop and reconsider before austerity goes too far and blights the life of ordinary working people like me who will then end up on benefit rather than continuing to work. 

Yours faithfully,