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Holyrood backbenchers demand benefit sanctions review

HOLYROOD backbenchers demanded a review yesterday of the Con-Dems’ savage sanctions for benefit claimants.

Harsh new rules ushered in by Tory Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith threaten jobseekers with 16-week benefits suspensions for reasons ranging from leaving a job voluntarily to failing to attend an interview with as little as 24 hours’ notice.

Scottish parliament welfare reform committee convenor Michael McMahon slammed the scheme as “broken” as he launched a report recommending an overhaul.

“The system is so broken that many people do not know why they have been sanctioned, which totally undermines the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) assertion that sanctions ‘teach’ people a lesson,” he said.

Critics have accused the government of wielding sanctions as a way to slash its welfare bill, with Citizens Advice Scotland blaming the policy for a surge in the number of households seeking out foodbanks.

“How many of us could manage if we did not get paid one week, without any notice or, often, explanation?” asked Mr McMahon.

“This demonstrates once again the enormous gulf between reality and DWP thinking.”

Tory MSP Alex Johnstone was the committee’s sole dissenter on the report.

A DWP spokeswoman said yesterday that sanctions were “only used as a last resort.”

People in genuine need could apply for hardship payments, she added — a sum worth just over £40 per week.

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