Truly shocked by Tory bank trials for benefit claimants.

Where is it heading given they won’t be the government in 6 months?

If you genuinely cannot see what is actually behind this and where this is heading, you are spectacularly naive.

Opening new accounts often require proof of address, proof of identity and sometimes NI number.

HMRC can (usually) find all your bank accounts to check you are paying all the tax you should. I assume a cross check on names and addresses (banks and building socs have to declare all interest paid to HMRC). If you use several names and various addresses you might get away with it, which is what the benefit crime gangs do. Also why it's much more difficult to open bank accounts, etc these days know your customer and all that.

Many pensioners on pension credit are still on fixed assessment periods where they don't even need to declare if savings go up so the article is likely misleading anyway.

Agree

Oh come off it. If people are fiddling the system to the tune of billions of pounds, yes there should be clampdowns. Benefits are an economic support system, not an ideological sacred cow.

people having savings, many of them likely to be pensioners perhaps having a bit put away to help their kids. You've said on previous threads that you gave your son tens of thousands for a house deposit. Do you not think that just maybe other people might want to do that too?

but this is simply not what benefits can be intended for.
You just can't generate sufficient tax income from a country that enables everyone to "put a bit away for their kids". That, like it or not, is the privilege of those who have been able to earn more than they have spent.

Well well now here's a surprise.

Stories appear that are shocking 'proof' of widespread fraud, leading to increased support for benefits clampdown including moving from all cash to part vouchers part cash and suggesting scrutinising benefit claimants bank accounts in order to give them "budgeting advice". At first. Leading inevitably to an approved list of things benefits can be spent on. All while reports of what people are spending Your Tax Money on is playing in the background, sympathy decreases, judgement increases, Tories justify further clampdown and restrictions, old buildings are repurposed as places people can be housed when they can't provide for themselves.

I have some sympathy for people who have been working and then lost their income, but still have savings, who do this - if they had recklessly spent all they earned, they would be entitled to low/no income benefits.

Obviously not everyone earns enough to save money, but the system seems to penalise saving for those who can afford it, while at the same time constantly moving the goalposts for pensions, which means people have to try to save for retirement.

It could be means tested by then - you might not get anything at all.

You've started a thread about people having savings, many of them likely to be pensioners perhaps having a bit put away to help their kids. You've said on previous threads that you gave your son tens of thousands for a house deposit. Do you not think that just maybe other people might want to do that too?
You rent out 11 houses and I'm betting you are cashing in on many of those tenants being on UC and other low income benefits who will never have the chance to own their own home. I'm sure your future is very secure.
Check your privilege and don't start thread designed to get people frothing and then disappear for the day !

Did you pull and did the contraception 'fail'.
If so you could be in for a big multiple payouts

In that case the systems need to be better designed.

This.

Was my comment the only one on this whole thread that you could be bothered replying to ?

I know many people who ‘employ’ spouses in their companies even though said spouses do not do a days work or do a little bit. They basically use the spouses personal allowance and lower tax rate, They can also pay into spouses pension and get tax relief.

I find that equally fraudulent and that should be investigated.

What about the dubious tax relief on Christmas parties - held at the company directors own home and they charge a debatable amount of costing as tax relief. People use that to even hold their own parties and call them ‘work’ parties.

I mean there is a whole load of fraud in self employed business expenses in small businesses. Let’s also explore that.

Well if we follow that through then no one with significant means should qualify for things like free hospital care, free GP appointments and also no child benefit.

Re child benefit, technically speaking a couple could earn £240,000 between them and dump £120,000 into pensions and still get child benefit. I resent every penny that I pay in tax to those couples too!

People who suffer personal injury should not receive millions in damages paid into a trust and claim universal credit. As it is this is a savings exemption.

I claimed DLA for my son but he has a life time of needs and it’s petrifying. The money will get recycled ultimately into a vulnerable persons trust for him when we are dead.

Otherwise, my son will be forced into a life of potential poverty despite working and trying so hard to be better….because society does not distinguish much between him and those who have more options to escape that poverty just by not being disabled.

As parents we will do everything to thwart that but we don’t have millions and millions to look after him for life. He will need benefits.

Franky it’s the least of his costing as social care and education are far more costly.

A few weeks ago on Mums Net I said that I wanted to walk in front of a bus when told that my baby son most likely had global delays ( he has done remarkably well since those dark days).

Just for goodness sake walk in our shoes where there is no escape from your child’s destiny. You have hope as parents - I didn’t.

I assume that anyone who had enough money wouldn't be skipping meals, obviously. You rather miss the point, which is that 6 million households are regularly skipping meals and the government wants to cut support yet further.

You come across remarkably like a character from Dickens @FaeryRing

Are they people with £50,000 sat in the bank?