Welfare proposals fail to take account of the reality of poverty, say Churches

Christian organisations have warned that the Government'swelfare proposals are based on a lack of understanding of the poor.They argue that constructive reforms are at risk of being lostunder a wave of punitive measures and cost-cutting.

The Methodist Church, the Church of Scotland, the United ReformedChurch, the Baptist Union of Great Britain, Housing Justice andChurch Action on Poverty have welcomed plans for a simplifiedbenefits system, but have raised concerns that the proposed reformsare based on inaccurate assumptions about the poor.

"There is a serious danger that people living in poverty will bestigmatised by government announcements that imply they are lazy orwork-shy," said Revd Alison Tomlin, President of the MethodistConference. "The Government seems to assume that if people areforced into working they will comply and their lives will be madebetter. The poor we meet are seeking to better their lives indifficult circumstances. They are willing to work, but facedifficulties in finding jobs, in meeting caring responsibilitiesand in living on the wages offered."

"People who are long-term unemployed are already struggling to findwork in a market place where there is increasing pressure on boththe public and private sectors," added Alison Gelder, Director ofHousing Justice. "Some need help to develop the skills to find andkeep a regular job. What they do not need are punitive measuressuch as the proposed cut in housing benefit by 10% after a year outof work. Most of all, they should not be forced to do manual labourin return for their benefits for just £1.73 an hour - £4.20 belowthe current adult minimum wage."

The group argues that Government welfare policy needs to be basedon a realistic assessment of those living in poverty and what theyreally need to get back into the work force. They are concernedthat policy should not be based on a skewed figures and amisunderstanding of the poor.

Revd Graham Sparkes, Head of Faith and Unity for the Baptist Unionof Great Britain said: "We meet people on a daily basis who areexperiencing long term unemployment. Unemployment, especially in anarea where there are few jobs available, damages a person'sself-confidence, health and ability to survive life's knocks. TheGovernment needs to understand what people in poverty need in orderto return to work. It's not good enough to just tell people to'pull their socks up'."

Niall Cooper, National Coordinator of Church Action on Poverty,said "We ask that the government to talk to people in poverty andbase their policies on combating the problems they face daily. IainDuncan Smith should come to one of our listening events, wherepeople struggling to make ends meet tell their stories. Simplisticsolutions such as benefit cuts, telling people to get on a bus tofind work, and enforced labour would face a harsh realitycheck."

On 28 October a group of Churches and Christian agencies wrote toDavid Cameron asking him to set the public record straight afterChancellor George Osborn conflated figures for benefit fraud anderror during his speech on the Comprehensive Spending Review,claiming that there is three times as much fraud as shown bygovernment figures.