The Dalbeattie JP at the centre of a benefits row with the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) has won a partial victory.
Robert McGoldrick was in the News last week saying he was being financially “punished” as he recovers from hip replacement surgery.
The self-employed relief dairyman and window cleaner has been laid up for ten weeks and is claiming universal credit.
He had expected £110 a week – but got £75, he claimed, because money he’d set aside for tax bills was classed as “savings” in his benefit calculation.
But now the DWP has contacted him and stumped up £140 in back payments after reassessing his situation.
Mr McGoldrick, 59, said: “This money should be in my pocket in the first place.
“It makes you wonder what you are paying tax and national insurance for.
“National insurance is supposed to be a safety net but it’s not – you’re down to a single thread.
“It’s like being on a trapeze with nothing to catch you if you fall.
“It’s the reverse of Robin Hood – I can’t follow how anybody can live on this long term. What are they surviving on, water and biscuits?”
“As a result he is to be paid today arrears totalling approximately £140.”
