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» Hopefully it's last we hear of Atos
Hopefully it's last we hear of Atos EmptyMon Mar 10, 2014 6:33 pm by Itsonlymedontworry


 

 Hopefully it's last we hear of Atos

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Itsonlymedontworry

Itsonlymedontworry


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Join date : 2012-11-16

Hopefully it's last we hear of Atos Empty
PostSubject: Hopefully it's last we hear of Atos   Hopefully it's last we hear of Atos EmptyMon Mar 10, 2014 6:33 pm

Hamilton MP Tom Greatrex column: Hopefully it's last we hear of Atos


Atos are not only looking for a way out of a contract that they have struggled with, but have now given up re-assessing claimants because they just can’t cope.

Atos are a multi-million pound French computer systems company.

Until the last couple of years, I doubt many Advertiser readers would have heard of them.

I had not until, shortly after I was elected in 2010, a constituent in Blantyre contacted me about the problems she had experienced with the Work Capability Assessment, which Atos run for the DWP.

Since then, alongside charities and disability groups, doctors and patients, Citizens Advice Scotland and many individuals, I have campaigned to highlight the failures of the assessment process and the need for fundamental reform.

Over that time, a series of horrendous stories have been told, terrible practice exposed and the case for change championed. So much so that Atos are not only looking for a way out of a contract that they have struggled with, but have now given up re-assessing claimants because they just can’t cope.

Last autumn – at our party conference – the Labour Party announced we would strip Atos of the WCA contract.

This is because they have proved to be incapable of providing assessments that are an accurate basis to decide whether somebody is fit for work – the types of cases highlighted by the Daily Record over many months are, sadly, commonplace.

Around 4 in 10 decisions taken to appeal have been overturned – costing you and I around £70m a year to run the tribunals.

Despite claims to have improved the process, the number of incorrect decisions remains stubbornly high.

In early 2012, I asked the National Audit Office to look into the contract – that summer they highlighted areas where Atos were failing.

I don’t disagree with the principle of assessing whether people are able to work.

Nor do many of my constituents who have suffered the Atos test. If somebody is physically and mentally able to, then support to get into a job can help transform lives for the better.

If somebody cannot work, then the government has a moral responsibility to support them until they can.

That will only happen if the process is fair, based on medical evidence and accurate.

Too many people feel they have been hounded, not helped, by an assessment carried out by Atos.

Until the last just not fit for purpose.

The response from Atos has changed over time. When they were first challenged, they refused to accept there were problems.

Later, they said there were issues but improvements were being made.

Then, they stated that they did not make decisions on benefits, the DWP did (although in most cases the DWP based their decisions on the Atos test).

Now they want out – because they say protests mean their staff are not safe.

The reality is probably more to do with the damage to the name and reputation of Atos – the WCA is just one of £3bn worth of contracts they hold from the UK government, with more granted by the SNP in Edinburgh and across the public sector in Scotland.

It is the WCA which has caused them the most problems – and a sneaking feeling that the DWP are happy for them to take the flack.

While Atos have performed poorly, that should not let the government off the hook. Remember it was the incoming coalition that accelerated the roll-out, ignoring the problems shown up in the pilots introduced before the election.

It was Tory MP Chris Grayling who refused to implement all of the findings of an independent review and his successor as Atos Minister Mark Hoban (since sacked) who claimed applicants withheld information as the reason for so many successful appeals.

Just changing the provider won’t solve the problem – it needs the government to overhaul the system, take more notice of medical evidence, treat people fairly and with decency.

Done properly it will also save tens of millions wasted on appeals clogging up tribunals up and down Scotland. If not, then the bad practice will continue, just with a different name in the headlines, and the same lack of confidence in the process.

Any test should be focused on helping those who can work, not hounding those who can’t.

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