Hmm. Got a bit of a nasty email from HMRC this week.

No biggie, just had to agree to the following: 

Keeping your commitments 

Your payment can be reduced if you don't keep a commitment without a good reason. This is known as a sanction. The length of the sanction will depend on: 

• what you failed to do 

• how long it takes you to do what you agreed 

• how often you've been sanctioned in the past year 

Warning 

If you don't keep a commitment, you can avoid losing more money by doing what you agreed as soon as possible. Your payment can be reduced if you don't keep a commitment. This is known as a sanction. The amount depends on what you failed to do and how often you've been sanctioned in the past year. 

If you don't keep a commitment 

You must tell your work coach straight away. You'll need to explain why. If we decide that you had a good reason, your payment won't be reduced. 

How to avoid reduced payments 

1. Do what you can to stay in work 

If you leave a job or lose pay by choice or due to misconduct, your payment can be reduced for up to 6 months. 

2. Report changes to your work 

If a job ends and you don't report it within 5 days, your payment will be reduced until the day before you report it. Once you've done this, your payment will be reduced for an additional 7, 14 or 28 days. 

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It just seemed to me to be an unnecessary threat to a disabled bloke on PIP and UC, working in the same government admin job as he has been since ‘07, just about managing in a role in which he isn’t particularly well-suited, but he does it anyway because he’s an adult. I get, though, that it's an automated email that will have been sent to millions of claimants. 

Here’s an idea: rather than badgering working disabled people, why not go after the £4.9 billion in fraudulent COVID loans that were never recouped?