Hi everyone,
I was awarded ESA last year and it ran out in august. I was taken into hospital on 24th july for the removal of my remaining ovary and cyst that was attached to my bowel, bladder etc.. Consultant told me it would take about 3 months to recover! So I contacted the dwp and explained my situation and was told, well basically that I couldnt get a thing as id had benefits for a year!

So I just thought id let everyone know that after 12months of benefits we will all recover dramatically and will be able to work full time and earn enough to live on until retirement!!! Which we may never retire due to the pension crisis.

Also a soldier posted a status on facebook that was brough to my attention last week. He was saying that as a soldier he has to provide a urine sample for drug testing and provide a clear sample before he can work at protecting our country. Why dont the government carry out drug testing periodically to all people on benefits and the sample has to be clear of illegal drugs before receiving paymemt. Wouldnt that save the government a fortune!

Sorry for the rant but ive spent 25 years paying ni and tax, the last 6 years ive paid class 1 & 3 category ni contributions to be told that I dont have enough contributions and ive had all available to me. What do I do now, I cant work to earn money! How do people get benefits when they havent worked a day in their lives!!!

Rant over (for now!!)

Louise xxx

Hi Louise , and sorry to hear of this , many groups campaigned against this but the Government used "Financial Privilege" to throw out amendments that were made by the House of Lords.

I understand that you are angry and upset, and rightly so , although i cannot condone blaming any group of individuals no matter what the reason . This blaming is for the likes of the Daily mail and the Express, who would , in the same breath state that disabled clients were not doing enough and cite the Paralympics as a case in point.

It appears the DWP have not fully explained the options .
These can be seen in the Disability Rights UK factsheet about ESA ... see section 14.1 , which gives you options .
There could also be other options dependant on personal circumstances , including DLA etc.

If you need more advice then see an Advice Centre as they would be able to tailor advice to your circumstances , rather than general info.

All the best

Rich