to wonder how they can afford it?

[ChickenLickn]

have been reading the christmas costs thead, and wondering how people who are jobhunting cope at christmas on an income of £67 a week. There is not even a winter fuel payment.

And thank you Sydney

why don't you get a job then people's princess? since there are millions of jobs and seemingly no barriers to working

Did you bother to read my post properly or did you just ignore it because you fancied a bit of soapboxing?

I specifically referred to those without health problems or dependent children, and I'm neither.

Thinking back to the years we were on lowest income, I remember making decorations and presents but also getting rather too upset when we were given a video game by a rich relative that could have paid for a pair of shoes or a coat.

I have full respect for those who manage on JSA

If you are on benefits then you are an idiot to be turning on other poor people

I completely disagree. IMO it's the behaviour of NEETS, layabouts and career breeders that have led to the recent benefit shake-ups. Now (no) thanks to them, the dear Tories have decided to scapegoat every single other last benefit claimant for their irresponsibility, and as a consequence our lives have been made immeasurably worse.

I have a non sn child aged 17... I could say she's dependent... we can all make excuses

Sigh. My youngest is just five.

Thepeoplesprincess
I think you are accepting the wrong situation.
You are accepting that false benefit claimants are creating the need for cuts and therefore are angry with false claimants.

But the financial problems are not caused by false benefits claimants. How about we get companies and celebrities to pay their whack. How about we stop the tax law being a mechanism by which very rich people avoid their moral responsibilities with impunity?

Making the conversation about benefits is the problem. Not whether benefits are deserved or not.

i awoke today, 8 year old baby daughter on teacher training, 12 year old expecting to care for her, so i said no i'll phone in work, now all 3 of us sat here doing nothing much, wind is blowing fence down, opened door to do pretty much nothing about it, and the 50 quid 3 foot Toys r us flying goldfish filled with helium, on xmas day, made a beeline out of the back and over to the sea. Bad day.

The poor should not be allowed to have christmas...

It should just be for the rich

maybe the rich could visit the deserving poor with small gifts of gruel and coal?

I think one of the points the Op didn't consider is that a person on £67 a week would be a single jobseeker, not a person with a family. The moment there are kids involved the money increases.

ERGO, a single person would have less Christmas expense ANYWAY, since most of the expenses detailed on the other thread were gifts for children and large family meals etc.

I hate these blue touchpaper threads, the OP makes a comment then disappears while everyone else argues.

also Peoples Princess - I work - my youngest is 3 - I have 2 others under 10 - it is possible. Oh and NEET means not in education, employment or training - it refers to 16 - 25 year olds who are seeking work - not all young people seeking work are a 'problem' :)

I am due to be made redundant and will soon be one of those people signing on. It is very hard to find a job at the moment - I know I am looking.

I spent 1 xmas on benefits as a single person. I was lucky to have family who fed me on xmas day - so no expense there, and I gave "vouchers" as presents e.g. x hours of babysitting. But these presents were all for adults as I was young and my peers did not yet have kids.

Well done Wonga at releasing the fish back into the wild .

I have friends who don't work, rely on benefits, but all have children. They either save, usually Park vouchers, or buy stuff from catalogues for over the odds price. There DC never seem disappointed by what they have though, and they always have a nice christmas.

Its dreadful, I was surprised to hear that winter help is not given to everyone in poverty, only pensioners (including millionaire pensioners!).

So sad that people are either getting into debt, going hungry or cold :(

while the banks and energy companies are raking in profits from our pockets.

linerunner and lesley33 - thats lovely

Its dreadful, I was surprised to hear that winter help is not given to everyone in poverty, only pensioners (including millionaire pensioners!)

Well that's wrong for starters. There is something for people on low income. Most energy companies offer the scheme and British Gas do it even if you don't have children under 5 (or children with additional needs) because I got it.

www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/funding/whds/whd_broader/whd_broader.aspx

A lot of people on benefit also fund Christmas with a Social Fund loan

zukie it appears to be at the discretion of the energy suppliers. My friend is an unemployed LP with an asthmatic daughter and she didn't get it.

It is at discression, I supplied everything they asked for, proved 3 times over that I was entitled to it but still got refused.

zukie it depends on the supplier. I'm with BG so got it as I have an income under 16K including WTC/CTC. I Think they are the only ones where you don't have to have a child under 5 to claim it.