I spent 18 years on benefits – the welfare system needs an overhaul

After two decades of being too ill to work, I know what it's like to rely on welfare. As the Government announces a crackdown on disability benefits, people like me are right to be nervous.

Cieran Brown Pic: Bimal Tailor

Just over a year ago, I found myself in the unusual position of looking for work after almost two decades of being unemployed. I had been on one type of benefit or another since the age of 23, after receiving an unexpected diagnosis of Hepatitis C.

I discovered I was infected with the disease of the liver after my mother was…