Do you think in these days of increasing technology there is a case for abolishing DLA care component?
Yesterday I sat in a tribunal for almost 2 hours watching an old lady cry as she gave evidence on her pain, poor mobility, incontinence, dizzy spells and generally crap life. She was asking for an increase in her current award of low care.
The decision was that the award was correct, as she could manage most things with the appropriate aids.
It got me thinking. I understand that robotics have advanced substantially in Japan, to the point that there is now a robot available that can do most everything around the house and call for help if needed.
Surely anyone could purchase one of these and negate the need for any care at all?
Comments please

Bring it on! Will save me having to pop round to ma in law after work every day, and she wont need that nice girl from the agency in the mornings anymore..... hold on though, wont she need the money she currently uses to pay the nice girl to pay for the robot?
And what about contact with people? Guess I'll still be going round there every day. After all nothing replaces being able to talk to someone, which is what many of the nice girls other clients actually need, so she tells me.

I suppose in the fullness of time there could be an array of gadgets and devices (or even one!) that might effectively replicate a personal assist, but presumably it wont be free, so DLA will have to be used to pay for that instead of the nice agency people/mobility scooters etc. etc.

If the robot could talk it might be an interesting companion and provide lots of fun for ma in law or whoever the nice old dear is! I know I wouldn't mind one when I get to that age! However, it might turn out like Marvin the Paranoid Android and drive you to distraction! Or it might turn out like Kryten from Red Dwarf which would be highly entertaining.

How about the ones in I,Robot? (the film not the book) I'll tell her to run away if it starts glowing red.....

I don't know about this robot. I suppose it might be able to vacuum the carpet and read a newspaper, but can it wash hair, help someone up stairs, administer first aid or wipe a claimant's arse?

If I lose the ability to wipe my own arse please can I have the female equivalent of Commander Data, modelled on Elizabeth Hurley possibly? Pretty Please?

Are you sure...? I'd hate to be your arse if you ended up with the equivalent of Lore !!! hahaha


For the benefit of those not sad enough to be trekkies, Lore was Commander Data's psychopathic 'brother'.

Of course the care component (and the whole benefit system) could be revolutionised at a stroke by replacing all the claimants with robots.

Except you then get Marvin the paranoid android moaning about the terrible pain in the diodes all down his side...