Rustington residents join disability battle rally

Four determined residents from St Bridget’s Leonard Cheshire Disability home, in Ilex Close, were among hundreds of people protesting in Brighton, against changes proposed by the government to the Disability Living Allowance (DLA).

Jackie Postance, Katy Montgomery, Jim Bates and Claire Sullivan joined 500 more disabled people at the Hardest Hit Campaign against the cuts.

Jackie, 47, said: “It was a good rally. We got to give our viewpoint to people who were there.

“But it’s nowhere near over yet. We have got a battle to go through, a battle we have got to win.

“This is something we will do, come what may, no matter what.”

The government is proposing to axe the mobility component of the DLA, under its Welfare Reform Bill, which, for some, would mean a loss of almost £50 a week from their current benefit allowance. Only the basic living allowance of £22 a week would remain untouched.

Speaking before the rally, Jackie, who suffers with spina bifida and is entirely reliant on using a motorised wheelchair to move around, said: “These cuts will destroy people’s lives. It will have a massive impact on the disabled.

“It took me about two years to save up nearly £6,000 for a powered wheelchair.

“I couldn’t have done it without the mobility allowance.”

During the Brighton rally, speakers from homes across the south took to the stand to implore the government to reconsider its proposals.

Key speaker, Wendy Tiffin, from Dorset, warned that if the government passed the bill, the cuts could lead to disabled people becoming “prisoners in their own care homes”.

She said: “I urge the government to listen to what we have to say and ask them to take on board some of the things that are said today.

“The government should take notice of the people taking part in all the rallies today – not just in Brighton but all over the country – and take a fairer approach to those who are the hardest hit.”

A spokeswoman from the Department for Work and Pensions, which is responsible for the DLA, said that the government was “absolutely committed to supporting disabled people” but added that the current system was in need of reform, as some of the benefits did not always reach those who needed them most.

Residents from St Bridget’s are now preparing for a final demonstration and march outside the House of Lords, on Thursday, November 3.