Workfare

Tubby Isaacs · **Posted:** Mon May 21, 2012 5:54 pm

We're always told schools and all have to be "allowed to fail", even if that means classrooms, science labs, workshops and playing fields lying idle.

Anyone reckon these welfare to work providers will be allowed to fail? I reckon the criteria will get changed- because of the Eurozone crisis or something.

new puritan · **Posted:** Wed May 23, 2012 2:14 pm

'New politics' in action:

Tory MPs 'gagged' welfare-to-work whistleblowers

Quote:

Four whistleblowers were yesterday "gagged" by Tory MPs from giving public evidence about widespread fraud in the Government's controversial welfare-to-work programmes.

Conservative members of the powerful Public Accounts Committee blocked attempts to allow internal auditors from companies, including A4E, from giving evidence about past malpractice that they had uncovered.

Instead they were force to give evidence behind closed doors after Tories on the committee objected that the Department of Work and Pensions had not been given advance knowledge of their evidence. Last night a source on the committee suggested that the whistleblowers had been "gagged".

Another said they believed that pressure had been applied to the Tory MPs by the Government to ensure that more damaging evidence about the fraud on the programmes was not placed in the public domain.

The Conservatives have an outright majority on the committee and have the power to block the evidence given in private even to be considered in its final report.

smod · **Posted:** Wed May 30, 2012 8:27 pm

mattomac · **Posted:** Sat Jun 02, 2012 3:49 pm

new puritan wrote:

'New politics' in action:

Tory MPs 'gagged' welfare-to-work whistleblowers

Quote:

Four whistleblowers were yesterday "gagged" by Tory MPs from giving public evidence about widespread fraud in the Government's controversial welfare-to-work programmes.

Conservative members of the powerful Public Accounts Committee blocked attempts to allow internal auditors from companies, including A4E, from giving evidence about past malpractice that they had uncovered.

Instead they were force to give evidence behind closed doors after Tories on the committee objected that the Department of Work and Pensions had not been given advance knowledge of their evidence. Last night a source on the committee suggested that the whistleblowers had been "gagged".

Another said they believed that pressure had been applied to the Tory MPs by the Government to ensure that more damaging evidence about the fraud on the programmes was not placed in the public domain.

The Conservatives have an outright majority on the committee and have the power to block the evidence given in private even to be considered in its final report.

That is transparent government for you.

Winegums · **Joined:** Fri Jan 15, 2010 11:04 pm **Posts:** 735

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/jun/0 ... CMP=twt_gu

Shocking. Not just that it happened, but that they're still letting themselves get caught. These companies really have no shame, and know full well that they won't be held to account.

new puritan · **Posted:** Tue Jun 05, 2012 7:43 pm

Tory cunt in 'cunt' shocker.

Quote:

The charity Tomorrow's People, which set up the placements at Close Protection under the work programme, said it would review the situation, but stressed that unpaid work was valuable and made people more employable. Tomorrow's People is one of eight youth charities that were supported in the Guardian and Observer's Christmas appeal last year.

Quote:

The Charity Commission has censured employment charity Tomorrow’s People over its decision to allow its chief executive, Debbie Scott, to appear in the Conservative Party election manifesto.

Scott, who accepted an offer last year to become a Conservative peer, appeared in a full-page picture on page 14 of the Conservative Party’s 2010 election manifesto, Invitation to Join the Government of Britain.

http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/news/10221 ... ILC-SEARCH

Kreuzberger · **Posted:** Tue Jun 05, 2012 8:21 pm

new puritan wrote:

Tory cunt in 'cunt' shocker.

Quote:

The charity Tomorrow's People, which set up the placements at Close Protection under the work programme, said it would review the situation, but stressed that unpaid work was valuable and made people more employable. Tomorrow's People is one of eight youth charities that were supported in the Guardian and Observer's Christmas appeal last year.

Quote:

The Charity Commission has censured employment charity Tomorrow’s People over its decision to allow its chief executive, Debbie Scott, to appear in the Conservative Party election manifesto.

Scott, who accepted an offer last year to become a Conservative peer, appeared in a full-page picture on page 14 of the Conservative Party’s 2010 election manifesto, Invitation to Join the Government of Britain.

http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/news/10221 ... ILC-SEARCH

Good call, NuPu. I had been trying to reconcile this one in my own mind. No more.

Malcolm Armsteen · **Posted:** Tue Jun 05, 2012 8:24 pm

John Prescott has taken this up and he has retweeted some responses he got from the umbrella charity which contracted with Close Protection:

Tomorrow's People ‏@TPcharity
@johnprescott @guardian John - what happened to our clients was totally unacceptable and contrary to how Tomorrow's People operate
we'll be issuing a full statement tomorrow morning - we're urgently reviewing our involvement with Close Protection UK
We're also very sorry to our clients that were involved and we're making contact with them asap #jubileestewards

Bones McCoy · **Joined:** Mon Aug 16, 2010 9:08 am **Posts:** 7419

Here's what I usually do when faced with a potential employer with an opaque past.

Company check: http://companycheck.co.uk/company/05750805

Then check each director: http://company-director-check.co.uk/director/911160566

And if I see a history like this

Company Summary

Company Name Company Status
CLOSE PROTECTION UK LIMITED Active
VOLUNTARY EVENT SERVICES LIMITED Dissolved
CPUK.COM LIMITED Dissolved
ANGEL EVENT SOLUTIONS LIMITED Dissolved
EVENT SAFETY SOLUTIONS LIMITED Dissolved
VENUSEC LIMITED Dissolved
DMD SECURITY LIMITED Dissolved
LDCUK LTD Dissolved
LDCUK LTD Dissolved

A long sequence of companies with only the latest active, I'll typically dig further, or simply leave well alone.

bluebellnutter · **Posted:** Tue Jun 05, 2012 11:44 pm

One suspects this is going to be a rather large time bomb in Camerons lap, especially if it turns out it in some way meant a security lapse at a Royal event

Gourami · **Joined:** Wed Jul 20, 2011 10:51 pm **Posts:** 2005

Here's hoping.

Incidentally, anyone else find that a weird name for a company? Brings to mind the kids TV series 'Tomorrow People' for some weird reason. It could be the identical name. Only with 'Phorever People' by the Shamen as a soundtrack.

Turns out those things I smoked at that party 20 years ago weren't just roll-ups. :lol:

new puritan · **Posted:** Wed Jun 06, 2012 3:14 pm

No 10 is, as with everything else, sticking its fingers in its ears and hoping this will all go away, but John Prescott seems to think there's more to come:

Quote:

So No10 is saying #jubileestewards and CPUK story is an "isolated incident." http://bit.ly/KPHNOR WRONG! #watchthisspace

Tubby Isaacs · **Posted:** Wed Jun 06, 2012 3:44 pm

The government have fucked this up quite incredibly. One of the appeals of privatisation is that, in the day to day sense, it gets governments off the hook. Some fuck up over trains gets a suit from SW Trains on telly, not the Transport Secretary. This privatisation has been so badly done, the government are more on the hook that they'd have been if they'd kept it in house.

Talking SW Trains, they're accused of (surprise, surprise) not running enough trains for the jubilee. People in affluent SW London couldn't get on. Hopefully a few journos live in this area.

Tubby Isaacs · **Posted:** Wed Jun 06, 2012 3:48 pm

Gourami wrote:

Here's hoping.

Incidentally, anyone else find that a weird name for a company? Brings to mind the kids TV series 'Tomorrow People' for some weird reason. It could be the identical name. Only with 'Phorever People' by the Shamen as a soundtrack.

Turns out those things I smoked at that party 20 years ago weren't just roll-ups. :lol:

Can I post a Shamen song? Before they got technoey, they were (um) like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFNACrhT8c0

From The Chart Show, by the look of it.

oboogie · **Posted:** Wed Jun 06, 2012 3:51 pm

Gourami wrote:

Here's hoping.

Incidentally, anyone else find that a weird name for a company? Brings to mind the kids TV series 'Tomorrow People' for some weird reason. It could be the identical name. Only with 'Phorever People' by the Shamen as a soundtrack.

Turns out those things I smoked at that party 20 years ago weren't just roll-ups. :lol:

CPUK bizarrely makes me think of the Communist Party even though I know full well it's called the Communist Party of Britain (CPB).

Workfare

Who is online