To think that most rich people don’t actually care about those struggling?

I couldn't agree more you see it here all the time - posters who conveniently forget that they get £40k worth of housing/rent/council tax/PIP/school meals/prescriptions/dental care/tax credits/funded childcare/nursery fees and other state benefits and probably plenty of other things that I have no idea about bleating that someone earning £50k is minted.

@JamesMacGill I totally agree , and applies to anyone I feel that is not at the level of getting any benefits at all but with family income under £100k ( or even a bit over if living in London or south east or areas of very high demand)

I agree but I will also say nobody gives a shit about the low-to-middle earning taxpayer who are in the absolute worst position of anyone. We’re seen as rich by people on benefits who are out of touch with how much things actually cost having become acclimatised to getting them for free or discounted. And we’re seen by the rich as merely employees.

@EarthlyNightshade I think you might need to tackle corruption first - many country’s with issues of the kind you are talking about also have obscenely wealthy leaders and gvt officials - take a look at Zurich airport at all the African ( amongst other places) gvt officials and their gold plated wives and numerous amounts of high end carrier bags - I do know what you are saying but I’m afraid it’s not a matter of levelling up and equality that will solve it

I suspect you live in a bubble, completely disconnected from the struggles of the ordinary people of (say) Burundi or South Sudan where over 50% of children experience stunted growth as a result of malnutrition.

You turn a blind eye and concern yourself with your own problems, don’t you? Relatively speaking, you have much to spare.

This isn’t to defend the obscene and immoral hoarding of wealth by the many-millionaire and billionaire class. It’s to point out that you’re complaining about the wrong thing. There’s enough to go round for everyone. But that’s not the world we live in, including you.

'From what I've seen and read'. I'm going to guess that your 'reading' is the tabloids and virtue signalling/look at me social media posts...

Nah. You sound bitter and resentful. A lot of the wealth created in the U.K. comes from people with working class background btw. So there are certainly opportunities.

As for if the rich care or not. You can’t generalised. However, at least where they do not care. There are clear incentives to donate money for charity and good causes. Also a sure way to make sure money reach people in need.

If you go on the government website and look how our tax is spent and how many billions everything costs, you will realise that it will take an awful lot of billionaires with an awful lot of money to make much of a difference. The interest repayments on our national debt are over £100 billion a year.

I have said above, but I believe that if the rich did care, the world would be moving towards equality, not further away. Projects to genuinely help and change things for the better would be normal rather than unusual. There is no need for world hunger, there is enough if it could reach the right people.

Happier countries have a smaller divide between the rich and the poor.

However, I don't blame the "rich", I think that most people put in the position of having a lot of money would prioritise themselves and their families above the general good. It's a real shame.

Good advice.

I think some people who are struggling can do more to improve their situations. I don't know anyone who wants to fund people who aren't helping themselves.

I think your username is not true

Manslaughter 😳

You don’t have to fund others just because you’re rich.

So you want unelected people to have even more power and influence than they already do? Who decides where the money should go? If these filthy rich types want to do the most good for the most people, they do as Gates and Warren Buffet do and pour large amounts of investment into health and disease prevention in Africa. Not into the UK. Because by global standards, we're OK.

Individuals in democracies don’t have the wherewithal to make structural changes : that’s for elected bodies and legislation and regulation. It needs political will which can’t always be bought.

Having said that, support of the third sector by philanthropists actually does make real change for real people. And to a certain extent I’m not that worried if that philanthropy is done with real concern for the end beneficiary or just for show.

Yes this.

I’m with you on this one, of course it’s not all of them but the celebrities begging for money from those of us just surviving for their most recent causes whilst enjoying luxurious holidays etc really grinds my gears.

...me, I don't know enough of those people to really have much idea. But as you do know them, I'd be interested to hear what they've said to you to lead you to that conclusion.

I mean, I assume you're not just making stuff up, having watched a lot of 'Very Rich People In Not Very Real Reality Shows - Harrogate Edition'.

I didn't say you don't though. I said that I think most people probably don't. Maybe you are more empathetic than the average person.

Very much agree with this. I’m comfortable but not wealthy, I donate to charities I care about but that aside I prioritise my own and my family’s happiness above helping others (in a financial sense), eg I would not forgo a fancy holiday and use the money to help strangers less well off than me. Therefore I don’t judge the ultra rich for spending or saving their money how they wish, it’s not really any different other than their money would go far further and they might miss it less but I don’t think you can really draw a line and say that at a certain point rich people ‘should’ give away their money. I can’t stand a hypocrite though so I detest celebrities, rich corporations etc encouraging other people to donate to a particular cause - those people and companies can put their hands in their own pockets first.

I don’t really agree with this actually. I’d say I spend a fair bit of time thinking about people less fortunate, whether it’s someone starving to death on the news or an elderly person struggling in a supermarket. I feel immensely grateful not to be in that kind of situation.

Manslaughter? Fucking hell.

You can't generalise.

One of the wealthiest men I've known lived in a big house with a vast garden and had investments coming out of his ears. He was a kind, mild-mannered sort of chap.

I only found out after he had died that he regularly donated to a local children's charity. Essentially, whenever it was a few grand short for a necessary project, one of the Trustees (who told me about this) would have a quiet word and £££££ would land in the account. He may well have done the same for other charities, I suspect he probably did.

Another absolutely minted local family had a long-running connection with the charity Lepra - again, nothing said, I only found out when I read an obituary.

Same