‘Conscious cruelty’: Ken Loach’s shock at benefit sanctions and food banks
Here’s another of Vox Political‘s heroes:
Ken Loach has said there needs to be more public outrage around benefit sanctions and the reliance on food banks, with the situation much worse for working people than when he made his seminal film Cathy Come Home, in 1966.
The veteran film-maker rarely speaks while developing a project but is so deeply concerned about government policy on benefits and the sanctions regime that he gave an interview to the Guardian on the set of his latest film.
Loach, 79, is shooting what may be his last film, I, Daniel Blake, based on the writer Paul Laverty’s research of jobcentres, benefit sanctions and food banks. It tells the story of Blake, who has worked for years as a joiner but is then forced to give up work and claim benefits. “The present system is one of conscious cruelty,” Loach said. “It bears down on those least able to bear it. The bureaucratic inefficiency is vindictive and hunger is being used as a weapon. People are being forced to look for work that doesn’t exist.”
Source: ‘Conscious cruelty’: Ken Loach’s shock at benefit sanctions and food banks | Film | The Guardian
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good man
Calling on all those pensioners, who like me who don’t need it, to donate their winter fuel payment to food banks just to show callous Tories what decent people think of their nastiness.
‘Conscious cruelty’: Ken Loach’s shock at benefit sanctions and food banks. The sad fact is this could and maybe is as well happening here in the U.S.A. too. People need leadership that has both their Eyes, Ears, Hearts, & Brains wide open for the job to receive the input of what’s going on. We need solutions not politicians ready to punish those who elected them into office to create forced find-work systems where the jobless helpless people live, where there are no jobs to be had or made. The leadership needs to give real help where the people live, back in their home areas not forced job-hunting programs where there’s no jobs at all. Get with it leadership – do your jobs better, don’t punish the people for the conditions they live in that you make. Thank you….In the U.S.A. to All the World who should be celebrating with us too. Happy Thanksgiving then later Merry Christmas too. 8Dbd
Happy Thanksgiving to VP‘s readers in the States.
I wonder if the UN investigation has noticed this, i hoped that there would have been a public slapping and an order to cease this behaviour immediately as soon as they started looking and saw the extent of the harm caused by these maniacs. who has got the foot that needs to be put down?
Time more celebs kicked up a stink about this, if they did, then the idiots of our country would take note and realise the truth about the damage the tories have really done to the people of this land and kick up a stink too!
Lots of celebrities have spoken out against the government, of course: Russell Howard, Victoria Coren-Mitchell, Rufus Hound, Paul O’Grady, Ken Loach, Michael Sheen, Benedict Cumberbatch, Charlotte Church to name just a few recent examples. More are always welcome.
Maybe all these slebs will publicly and vociferously back the only solution to the Tory scourge, namely A MASSIVE, COUNTRY-WIDE VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE!
vote of no confidence,,,when they can just remove your name/ vote???
What we need is good satire, when spitting image was on this behaviour would have been nipped in the bud.. it surprises me how few people are aware of the harshness and spite this government has dished out and who it is directed at. I have and met people who refuse to believe that the government would cause deliberate harm to the weak and voiceless. I have been shouted at by blue collar workers for suggesting sanctions have killed and are imposed as a death sentence by some self important idiot who can see that diabetes+lack of food+removal of mobility=coma and death, but finds pleasure in it.
It is too horrific to believe so its easier not too.
Satire shows these people to themselves and should be as cruel as possible because nothing is worse to a psychopath than public ridicule and it makes them think twice.
Why is IDS still a free moron? He should have been arrested for “work makes you better” it disturbed my peace. Give me an hour alone with him, the tattoo on his forehead would say “NEVER AGAIN”