Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
SHOT IN THE HEAD... BUT TURNED DOWN FOR BENEFITS
Cruelty of PIP system laid bare again as dad refused payments
A DEPRESSED dad who was shot in the head during the Troubles has been turned down for the cruel new disability benefit PIP.
Stephen Robinson has battled alcoholism and PTSD since a bullet shattered his skull in 1973.
The 60-year-old from Belfast said: “I paid my way for 32 years but taking away the DLA will make my life very, very difficult.”
There would be times when I’ve thought about taking my own life STEPHEN ROBINSON BELFAST YESTERDAY
A MAN who was shot in the head as a schoolboy during the Troubles has been refused the disability benefit PIP.
Stephen Robinson was 15 when the bullet damaged his skull so badly he had to have a titanium plate fitted.
Now aged 60 and battling alcoholism and depression, he suffers flashbacks, nightmares and anxiety linked to post-traumatic stress disorder. Stephen also admitted to feeling suicidal.
But without PIP to replace his DLA payments, he must now survive on £648 sickness benefit a month.
Stephen said: “I am coping the best I can, but taking away the DLA will make my life very, very difficult.
“I paid my way for 32 years, but I am not fit to work now. I have mental health issues and am a severe depressive and having to take tablets.
“I turn to alcohol to cope with what happened me all those years ago.
“There would be times I would be capable of having bad thoughts in my head and I have thought of taking my own life.”
Stephen recalled he was playing with pals when he was injured.
He said: “I didn’t even hear the shots. I was coming home from Kelvin Secondary School in Belfast.
“Me and a fella called Bobby, and another lad called Raymond had been playing pitch and toss.
“We walked up Roden Street and turned the corner.
“I just remember standing there in my school blazer.
“I didn’t even hear the shot. It just felt as if my head was exploding, the sensation was unbelievable.
“After the bullet hit me I was just in another world – I saw visions of angels and everything.
“The blood was gushing out of my head and two guys who I had never met put me in a car.”
Stephen added he has no memory of what happened next but has been able to piece together events from what others told him.
It took a long and complicated surgery during which he needed a blood transfusion and had a large section of his skull removed to save his life.
He was then treated in intensive care but he’s not sure for how long. The Donegall Road man said doctors told him he was lucky to be alive after the attack. Following his recovery, the dad-of-two went on to work in the shipyard and for the NHS. But Stephen turned to alcohol in a bid to cope and his marriage broke down.
He said: “I didn’t realise what was coming into my life because of the trauma.”
But he said he feels the wound WORRY Stephen fears for future he suffered through no fault of his own, wasn’t even considered during his mandatory reassessment for PIP. That outcome has left him feeling more stressed than ever.
He added: “Someone at Victims and Survivors was contacted by PIPS, but this evidence seems to have been overlooked somewhere.
“I never got a point in any direction. Whenever I got the decision on a Friday I went on the drink because I found it very hard.
“Pressure of that nature gets to me – in a click of the fingers I turn to drink. I found the pressure of the interview even hard.”
A spokesperson for the Victims and Survivors Service said it is unable to comment on individual client cases.
The source added: “When we are made aware a client is in need, we will make immediate contact with them to identify the support we can offer.”
The Department of Communities said: “Individuals who are not entitled to PIP may be entitled to other benefits. We are very mindful of the impact of the
Troubles on victims and survidisagrees vors. If a person with the decision, they can ask for it to be reviewed and provide any additional information.
“There is then also the opportunity to appeal to an Independent Tribunal.
“If a person does not qualify for PIP after their assessment and lodges an appeal, a supplementary payment may be provided.”