AIBU to want spending cuts rather than more tax rises?

Steal? Are you actually for real?

Do you have any understanding whatsoever of the fact that there are not enough jobs to go around? That many jobs don’t pay enough to live on? That there are many many people with illnesses and disabilities who, even if well enough to work, will be discriminated against by employers nonetheless and thus potentially unable to find a job? In other words, huge numbers of people who want to ‘pay their own way’, are striving to ‘pay their own way’, and are literally unable to do so. What do you suggest they do? Would you like to see a return to the workhouses?

No one, presumably, would dispute that genuine benefit fraud should be cracked down on, but if you don’t like being in a society that at least attempts to cushion genuinely vulnerable citizens, other countries are available. Disgusting levels of prejudice and ignorance in your posts and those of others on this thread.

Because benefits in the UK are enough to meet basic human needs.

Read the original report and the research it actually refers to.

I quoted the figures upthread. The minimum net threshold they're using for these statistics is £624 a week for a lone parent with two children and £790 for a couple with two children, after what they define as unavoidable costs (housing, childcare, water and council tax).

It then rather artfully compares this with the wider gross income distribution, glossing over the fact that higher earners are paying substantial amounts of tax and meeting those same unavoidable costs entirely out of their own pockets.

Call me insensitive, but I struggle to describe this as poverty. I suspect plenty of perfectly ordinary middle class households have less genuinely disposable income left at the end of the week.

Labour will have to rein in spending anyway.

I stopped buying from Amazon when information about how staff are treated started coming to light. I don't drive a Tesla or use X. HTH.

Much of that demographic is NOT poor!

This is basically a way to gradually make the state pension means-tested over the course of about 40 years.

I do always find it weird that it's young people who seem to want to remove the triple lock/add means-testing. It's almost as if they don't realise that the loss of provision will fall most heavily on those who are currently under about 50.

Of course, it will fall on everyone eventually, as staying in the UK becomes ever less attractive for net-contributors.

Complete cut to foreign aid.

25% cut to the civil service.

25% cut to all welfare.

Reinstate a child benefit cap (3 children).

Mandatory in person PiP review for all claimants.

Scrap triple lock, winter fuel allowance, free TV licence, free bus passes for the elderly.

Motability only for UK manufactured cars, basic models only.

Cut House of Lords down from 1000 to say 200.

Much of that demographic is NOT poor!

I take it you don’t use X, or drive a Tesla, or buy anything from Amazon ?

Expecting a country's workers to compete for local jobs with the entire globe is some hardline wage-suppression hypercapitalism - a bit far even for me, but you do you.

Let me guess, you live up north, and work for Andy, with that very specific property tax figure?

Those of us with more expensive properties generally (apart from the very rich) have less disposable income as our mortgages are higher. Living in an expensive area doesn't necessarily mean we earn more - the nhs pays the same whether you live in the south east or north east. And I'm sure I will get 'well you could always move somewhere cheaper' - not so easy in the current job market, and with elderly relatives to care for.

The previous NI rises have already crippled nhs and schools, as it goes up for employers as well as employees, as well as having a huge impact on private business, impacting on economy and likely leading to a reduced ratherthan increased tax take

'Jobs for the English', you mean?

You really think the people you're talking about who benefited are in the majority? You're either reading the available data very selectively to suit your agenda, or not bothering to read it at all.

'Jobs for the English', you mean?

Lots of well paid people at Amazon. Lots of well paid software engineers. Amazon offers so many well paid corporate careers. What are you on about? I've met lots of product managers there and they all are fine.

Elon Musk has what - Tesla and spacex. All of them get paid well. The SpaceX IPO made so many blue collar workers midnight millionaires. And the innovation from all these companies benefit society.

Really? For those jobs? Madness. We have too many young people who are NEET looking for work as it is.

It's not happening.

It is happening but it's a good thing.

That's because a) I wouldn' t know where to even start and b) your posts on this thread are a joke.

You seriously think these billionaires who start up companies treat and pay their staff well? If you're really that deluded, I'm not putting in the mental legwork to demonstrate otherwise, there's ample evidence to the contrary just a short Google away. A couple of names to get you started: Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos.

I suspect that's part of why Andy Burnham does his "dumbed down" social media posts.