Is Lord Freud the most complacent man in history?

Complacent: Pleased, especially with oneself or with one’s own merits, advantages, stuation etc, often without awareness of some potential danger or defect; self-satisfied.

Responding to a question in the House of Lords yesterday, which asked what assessment had been made for the reasons why only 4.5 per cent of people affected by the bedroom tax had downsized compared with the 25 per cent estimated in the 2012 impact assessment Housing Benefit: Under occupation of social housing, Lord Freud said -

‘The 25 per cent figure within the impact assessment reflected research which asked a hypothetical question about what people thought they might do in response to a reduction, but this was undertaken some time before the full details of the policy were finalised.’

Adding that analysis of the potential sensitivity of estimated savings had been based on an assumption that around 8 per cent would move, he claimed that the actual number that had downsized - 19,000 or 4.5 per cent - was broadly within the bounds of this analysis. He went to to say -

‘It was never assumed that downsizing was a remedy for everyone and we were not in a position to predict how many people would choose to move.’

He also appeared to imply (to my understanding) that many of the negative impacts of the bedroom tax are the fault of Social Landlords’ mismanagement of their stock, rather than poorly thought out, retrospectively and insensitively applied, vindictive and idealogically driven legislation.

Given the amount of work that many Social landlords have put into mitigate the affects of Freud and Duncan-Smith’s vicious attack on the vulnerable (ensuring all affected tenants apply for DHPs, making it easier for tenants to register for rehousing, effort put in to maximising income, budgeting advice etc, etc), I would also like to nominate Lord Fraud as the world’s most disingenuous man.

Most complacent man in history? Probably not.
Most complacent man alive? Yes.

Smugness and an ability to ignore facts that are slapping you in the face so hard it’s hard to stay on your feet have been requirements for any government member in the DWP since 2010.

I think you all misunderstand. Like the wonderful Universal Credit that is changing the life of millions of the poor, it is all working well and everything is under control and IDS and Lord Freud know best and all the hundreds of millions of pounds spent on the UC IT that does not work is money well spent and the Treasury has agreed to everything really and people are saying openly in the street “how long do we have to wait until that amazing Lord Freud takes over everything” and…... 

Private Eye has a phrase for the Lord I think…..