Links & Events

In the week that the Chancellor announced his Autumn Statement, leading figures from different sides of the political spectrum and the media came together at the House of Commons on 2 December to debate the role of politicians and the media in manufacturing stereotypes of benefit claimants.

At the event organised by Middlesex University's , Labour's Baroness Ruth Lister, Conservative MPs Steve Baker and John Redwood, Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee, 'Benefits Street' producer Richard McKerrow and BBC journalist Tom Giles shared their experiences of how storytelling around welfare has evolved.

The Business School's Dr Daguerre, who co-authored the report 'Workfare in 21st century Britain', said: "A political choice has been made to protect spending on pensions and health care, leaving little room for manoeuvre when trying to squeeze out savings from a tiny budget, that is, benefits on working age claimants.

"In this context, eroding public support for benefit claimants has become a political necessity for the coalition government."

Steve Baker and John Redwood said that they both opposed demonising welfare claimants, and Mr Baker added that the recession had forced the Conservatives to stop its early intervention programmes aimed at helping people turn their lives around. However, Polly Toynbee countered that she could "not recall seeing any government launching such mean attacks on people on benefits".

Commenting on the media's role in the hostile environment surrounding benefits, Richard McKerrow claimed the media storm about 'Benefits Street' was created by "the written press or social media, and by people who had not seen the series".

Following the debate, the packed audience, comprising NGO representatives, practitioners, academics and students, was given a chance to question the panel.

A member from anti-poverty organisation ADT Fourth World remarked that "a lot of people from the media or politics who talk about poverty are middle class and do not come from a working class background, which encourages stereotyping of people on benefits", while an academic pondered why social scientists "are so rarely asked by television to talk about their research".

Debate Chair Claire Fox, the Director of the Institute of Ideas, drew the meeting to a close – praising both the panel and the audience for the quality of the discussion.

To read Dr Daguerre's ESRC-funded welfare report identifying the legal and political arguments that justify the reframing of welfare rights as conditional, download it from the resources page.

With the unemployment rate at 5.9% and the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) falling by 20,400 to 931,700 in the three months to October, the Coalition government claims that welfare reform - intensification of work search activities, tougher benefit sanctions and benefit caps - helps people get into paid work. Focusing on benefit sanctions for jobseekers, the ESRC report entitled ‘The erosion of rights to social assistance in 21st century Britain’ shows that the current debate on benefit sanctions is for the most part a political smokescreen. The purpose of welfare reform is to send a strong message to claimants: “Be aware that there is no longer an automatic entitlement to state support.”

Critics say the Coalition government is engaging into a PR war against poor people. Political leaders and the media are not simply followers of public opinion: they play a key role in shaping the public perception of benefit claimants and the fairness of the welfare state.

Leading figures from different sides of the political spectrum and the media will share their experiences of how storytelling on welfare has evolved. This important and timely event will help foster an honest and passionate debate regarding narratives on benefit claimants in the run up to the general election.

STRICTLY BY INVITATION ONLY!

Please bring a printed copy of your invitation to the event as these will form part of the security procedures. You may be asked to show proof of identity. Please arrive via Cromwell Green entrance. Take a look at

http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/access/events/ and http://www.parliament.uk/documents/facilities/maps/colmap1.pdf for details regarding how to get to the event.

Click on the 'Visit Link' button to go to the Eventbrite page.