Money saving expert thinks civil unrest is coming

[ivykaty44]

There was a thread on mumsnet recently about civil unrest, views seemed to be it wouldn’t happen, the British don’t protest

Martin Lewis thinks hungry cold people will protest

I think he could be correct, what have people unable to afford heat and food got to lose?

I used to be able to donate to four charities every month (not a lot but about £40) I can't afford to now and it makes me very sad that I can't.
My sister works for our local children's hospice (charity) and donations have significantly decreased. She's in a terrible emotional state as they can't afford to keep the service going as it should. It's dreadful.

Yet to counter this, there is a record number of jobs, vacancies, whatever. I watched last night's Panorama, I just think household skills have been lost for generations.
People are literally helpless, it's distressing and irritating at the same time.
We feed a family of four, (£50) all meals cooked from scratch, we use eBay and vinted for clothes, etc. My DP is from an ex-soviet country, these migrants support one another and work 2-4 jobs. I just think the British mindset for thriftiness via the community is lost.
It's like foodbanks, use them, we should never look a gift horse in the mouth.

@ivykaty44
I was raised with that mentality but I found that it was really looked down on as though I was too stupid to know how to earn more money.

There’s a real problem in our society where self sufficiency and practical skills are ridiculed as something for the peasants. It has turned in the last few years, I think due to eco awareness apps like Vinted but overall buying and eating some healthy artisan expensive produce for lunch is seen as aspirational, and ‘good’ whilst simple home cooked healthy food is pedestrian, boring and unsophisticated- one is about spending excess money, the other about saving money.

People can do the maddest of things when under financial pressure. I picked this story up this morning. Very briefly, a Chinese pilot left a suicide note saying he lost his life savings when Evergrande crashed. He flew his plane into a mountain, killing 132 passengers and crew.

www.asiamarkets.com/evergrande-linked-to-china-plane-crash-in-wild-suicide-rumour/

There’s a real problem in our society where self sufficiency and practical skills are ridiculed as something for the peasants.

Yes, my late GM was a keen knitter and dressmaker, but GF resented it - he could afford to buy her clothes. Similarly DM tended to look down on home made clothes as 'homespun'. However, with very cheap imports now from South East Asia, it really can be cheaper to buy than to make.

@Hrpuffnstuff1

Yet to counter this, there is a record number of jobs, vacancies, whatever. I watched last night's Panorama, I just think household skills have been lost for generations. People are literally helpless, it's distressing and irritating at the same time. We feed a family of four, (£50) all meals cooked from scratch, we use eBay and vinted for clothes, etc. My DP is from an ex-soviet country, these migrants support one another and work 2-4 jobs. I just think the British mindset for thriftiness via the community is lost. It's like foodbanks, use them, we should never look a gift horse in the mouth.

High vacancies / employment is a counter I agree.

Very high unemployment is more a recipe for unrest

I think you need to look at what the vacancies are and what terms and conditions they offer. Poorly paid gig economy work which could disappear in a flash might make the Govt's stats look good, but isn't a very secure basis on which to live.

I just think household skills have been lost for generations.
People are literally helpless, it's distressing and irritating at the same time

Blame the government. They focused all attention on academia. Subjects like DT ( practical skills) have disappeared in a lot of schools.

Subjects like DT ( practical skills) have disappeared in a lot of schools.

Or even when they were, they were theoretical - design a something or other, not follow a recipe to cook a meal or follow instructions to produce some carpentry.

Doesn't everyone cook. Even I learnt to cook when I went away to university, I don't do it nowadays as DH enjoys cooking (and is fussy). I know a lot of younger people may not do it a lot if they have busy lives but usually that's when they have no dependents and can afford to eat out. Practically everyone I know cooks.

I always thought an issue might be not having a proper kitchen (if living in temporary accommodation in premier Inn) or not having access to transport to get to the cheap supermarkets.

Although would it be worth repairing stuff from Primark?

@MaryAndHerNet

Dumb question time.

Why do people.refer to the UK as a wealthy country?

We owe, in national debt, more than GDP?

"UK general government gross debt was £2,223.0 billion at the end of March 2021, equivalent to 103.7% of gross domestic product (GDP)."

If I owed more out than my wages each months, I'd poor as fuck. But maybe that's a too simplistic view?

Indeed. And the real measure of overall wealth is GDP per capita, based on which the UK is far from "one of the wealthiest countries in the world", and getting further away from being so with every year that passes.

[quote desiringonlychild2022]@cakeorwine China's houses are far more expensive in terms of income multiples than even London, but the home ownership rate is still 90%..this is because home ownership is generally a communal activity, the parents and kids club together to buy a property. In Singapore, expats always tell me how expensive their rent is but for locals, home ownership rate is 89% cos of government subsidized housing which is sold mainly to family units (couples, siblings, parent-child) or singles above 35. The UK has a nuclear approach to our lifestyles much like the rest of Europe but we lack the incomes! Nuclear living is traditionally associated with richer countries as it's more expensive to run smaller households but I think we seem stuck with the illusion that we deserve it despite not having the incomes to support it.[/quote]
Also I don't believe these countries have such punitive inheritance taxes do they? Therefore a family can pass down a house from one generation to the next once they own one. Families don't have to go through the same hardships to try to buy one over and over with each new generation.

@colosmbo

We obviously have the ageing population issue (which the gov hasn't planned for) so I can only see things getting worse.

Yep. The remaining working population will be taxed to death given there is no desire to tax wealth. Especially now we have made highly undesireable for healthy working aged immigrants to come here, who were net-contributors to tax revenue and increased productivity. Thanks Brexit! 🤯🤦🏻‍♀️

@IamTheEvilPea apartment blocks in Asia are torn down every 50 years. They are not built to last..in fact some people in Singapore even purposely buy apartments in regentrifying areas earmarked for redevelopment. The residents collectively negotiate so the developer compensates them handsomely. My best friend's mum has done it twice and made a million! She bought a new condo with the proceeds. In China, I know some people believe buying an old home means inheriting the previous owner's bad luck hence their obsession with UK new builds. So each generation has to buy a new home.

How people buy - in China , the parents buy with their only son. In Singapore, there is a government subsidized housing scheme but many people buy with their parents and live with their parents so it's 4 people's salaries and savings really.

There’s a real problem in our society where self sufficiency and practical skills are ridiculed as something for the peasants.

Completely disagree, I think it's admired if you can knock up your own dress or cushion etc but it's expensive & time consuming.

I think it's admired if you can knock up your own dress or cushion etc but it's expensive & time consuming.

But at one time, say up to the 1950s, it wasn't, and bought clothes or household goods were more expensive.

but my response was to a post about society ridiculing skills as for the peasants. I don't think that's true now, it may have been in the 1950s but I'm referring to now.

I used to sew about 20 years ago and the fabrics were a reasonable price

[quote desiringonlychild2022]@IamTheEvilPea apartment blocks in Asia are torn down every 50 years. They are not built to last..in fact some people in Singapore even purposely buy apartments in regentrifying areas earmarked for redevelopment. The residents collectively negotiate so the developer compensates them handsomely. My best friend's mum has done it twice and made a million! She bought a new condo with the proceeds. In China, I know some people believe buying an old home means inheriting the previous owner's bad luck hence their obsession with UK new builds. So each generation has to buy a new home.

How people buy - in China , the parents buy with their only son. In Singapore, there is a government subsidized housing scheme but many people buy with their parents and live with their parents so it's 4 people's salaries and savings really.[/quote]
But if they are generously compensated then they can buy somewhere else, like your friend? The compensation must be good it people do that deluberately. By each generation having to buy a new home I didn't mean people never move properties, I meant each generation didn't have to save for one from scratch if ownership can be passed between generations without enormous inheritance tax bills forcing people to sell up? Hence you wouldn't have this constant mortgage burden on every generation.

I haven't read the comments but i guarantee the vast majority have no idea whats coming. Food riots will be the least of your worries!

We are heading for a recession bigger than the great depression. Believe me or don't, im really not bothered but by October everyone will know.

Well that's depressing!

@Peregrina

I think you need to look at what the vacancies are and what terms and conditions they offer. Poorly paid gig economy work which could disappear in a flash might make the Govt's stats look good, but isn't a very secure basis on which to live.

Exactly. The existence of lots of vacancies primarily doing work that doesn't pay well enough to live on and have poor terms and conditions doesn't counter anything. It's a bad sign in itself.

I don’t know breakdown but in my sector it seems to be true - ie recruitment consultants talking about ‘employee market’ etc - not low paid but PAYE

@Hrpuffnstuff1

Yet to counter this, there is a record number of jobs, vacancies, whatever. I watched last night's Panorama, I just think household skills have been lost for generations. People are literally helpless, it's distressing and irritating at the same time. We feed a family of four, (£50) all meals cooked from scratch, we use eBay and vinted for clothes, etc. My DP is from an ex-soviet country, these migrants support one another and work 2-4 jobs. I just think the British mindset for thriftiness via the community is lost. It's like foodbanks, use them, we should never look a gift horse in the mouth.

I dont think there a record number of jobs any more. From what I read this month.