Hello everyone. What a week for our welfare reform campaign! Here in Vauxhall we’re still catching our breath!
A night of high drama in the House of Lords on Wednesday – during which the Government’s Welfare Reform Bill suffered three successive defeats - has given our campaign a remarkable boost. By far the biggest victory of the evening was for an amendment tabled by Lord Patel, which exempts cancer patients from proposals to time limit Employment and Support Allowance to just one year. Over 220 Lords backed the amendment; a figure which surprised even seasoned political commentators.
For many cancer patients one year is simply not long enough to make a recovery. Getting to a point when you’re ready to return to work can take years not months in some cases. We’re delighted therefore that the Lords have had the courage to stand up for cancer patients and act so decisively on their behalf.
The challenge now is to make sure that MPs support the amendment when the Welfare Reform Bill returns to the House of Commons in February. You can help us make our case to MPs by signing our welfare reform petition and asking your friends and family to do the same. The more support we get the stronger our message to MPs will be!
