1 'work should pay more than benefits’
Yes it should - by making employers pay an ACTUAL living wage that doesn't require subsidisation by the country. Especially despicable when it's massive international conglomerates who avoid paying the correct taxes and have huge profits.
'small businesses can't afford to pay a living wage’ while I do think partly to encourage economic growth small and new businesses should get some support to pay a living wage, there's a lot of businesses being started by people who don't know what they're doing and the businesses aren't viable. If within 2 years you can't afford to pay employees a living wage, it's not a viable business certainly max 5 years.
Higher wage also = more income tax and NI paid, more spending (more tax paid as vat, business taxes)
'but companies will just outsource’ in practical terms this is not always possible for a company to do anyway, only certain jobs this can apply to. You can't outsource to another country:
Cleaning, waitressing, care work, retail assistants, refuse collection, engineering, physical work on roads, water supply, electrical supply, gas supply, phone lines, internet connection lines, building, plumbing, hairdressing, child care…
And for those that can be outsourced - penalties if they do so too much or in a way detrimental to the economy. That's the kind of thing legislation is for. There's too much pandering to the wealthy. (Typical and predictable tory behaviour).
2 'people shouldn't get away with CHOOSING not to work’
The jobs AREN'T THERE! Even according to govts own stats there's approximately 30% more people seeking work than jobs available.
Where I live there hasn't been a job offering over 16 hours in almost a year, all jobs advertised receive hundreds of applications. Part of the reason is employers refusing to offer 16+ hours as this triggers employee rights. I've actually seen jobs recently advertised where the number of hours available were less than 10 (not weekend/eve jobs).
The support to return to work that WAS there isn't any more. Help with clothes for working, transport, childcare deposits, all been cut.
There's SUPPOSED to be an 'overlap’ so that someone who’s in receipt of benefits who then gets a job isn't stuck while waiting on first (usually monthly in arrears) pay cheque. The reality is the second you tell DWP/tax credits/council you have a job, all payments are stopped. So many people on benefits are risking a conviction for fraud (which could lead to loss of job) to not tell until they get first pay cheque.
Because the system can't cope with changes in circumstances temp jobs, jobs with varying pay (shifts, zero hours) are not practical for most people.
Anecdata - ‘I know this family who are all work shy scroungers’
a - stats even the govts own prove people like this are very much in a tiny minority
b - do you know this family's entire educational, medical and employment history? I doubt it. I personally have been accused of this simply because my disability is invisible and I don't broadcast my mh issues (nobody else's business well certainly not some snotty neighbour who barely knows me!)
3 'if you can't get a job retrain’
Cuts mean many courses have been cancelled. Again, here the nearest ecdl course is now 3.5 hours commute away. Current rules on transport expense payments don't cover this. The few courses that do run locally are massively oversubscribed and underfunded in terms of materials. Also means loads of tutors out of work and can't get 'ordinary’ jobs as they're 'overqualified’.
Only some training courses are considered 'acceptable’ if you're in receipt of benefits. If you're on jsa it's sometimes even seen as 'avoiding getting a job’!
4 'don’t have kids if you can't afford em’
People's circumstances change. I was married and in very good health when I had my daughter. I had no reason to think I would experience marital breakdown, ex not paying maintenance, acquiring mental illness and a disability, my daughter developing a disability.
Contraception is not 100% not even supposedly permanent ones. If you take that to a conclusion of enforced celibacy that would surely lead to MORE relationship breakdowns and the increased costs that would incur (plus it's bloody inhuman literally!)
In addition I wonder how many of you knew/know that the new cap on 2 children for tax credits also applies to children who are the result of rape? If a woman is raped if she can't PROVE it was rape (and we all know how easy that is 
) She'll still be subject to the cap. So not just punishing single mum's for BEING single mum's but punishing rape victims.
This is more often than not directed at mothers - in terms of lone parents fathers, who are usually the absent parent don't get nearly the same vilification. Even IF they pay maintenance it is nowhere near what the mother, state or both are paying towards the cost of raising a child that's half theirs. The cms should have stronger powers and the amount needs to be increased and no deductions allowed. Surely the 'dont have kids if you can't afford them’ should also apply to men having more children with a new partner? The older children didn't disappear/stop needing fed!
5 'housing benefit shouldn't be going to private landlords’
I agree BUT as several others have said there's a huge lack of social housing. 7 year waiting list here and that's even with rules that only those in genuine need can even APPLY to go on the list. 2 new housing developments recently built, neither are low cost but will be sold on the 2nd home market to the very wealthy. (Picturesque area). Right to buy one of the worst policies EVER.
Investing FAR more in social housing would create jobs, provide training in skills we're losing, boost the economy, create cheaper housing for those that need it, improves positive community feeling.
6 'live somewhere cheaper/move’
Not possible if you're on benefits. Bloody hard to find landlords that will take on claimants anyway. In addition the poor can't save up deposits, moving costs, up to 6 months rent in advance.
Would incur further costs to the country by:
Moving people away from their support networks leading to decrease in mental health, increase in physical ill health, increase in childcare costs, increase in the poor working needing time off for their own/children's sickness.
More demand on properties in cheaper areas pushes rents up.
Cheaper areas usually have higher unemployment/fewer jobs therefore MORE likely to need benefits for longer.
Makes more expensive areas more elitist, so increases rents here too.
Workers on low wages living outside the area they work in means they need more support to get to work, are doing longer commutes leading to more ill health (mental and physical).
More pressure on transport into the more expensive area for commuting purposes.
but God forbid common sense be applied!
“I have always said, if the benefits life is so great, why dont you pack in your jobs and go on it yourselves then?”
Exactly! Particularly applies to those that think it's easy to get benefits! In my experience the people vilifying we claimants usually haven't ACTUALLY experienced not only benefits but even poverty, let alone disability or sickness or being a carer! Have you never heard 'there but by the grace of God?’
Shelter estimates there are 8 million families in England and Wales one pay cheque away from homelessness. Several of the arrogant posters supporting these cuts will one day be claimants themselves - I wonder if their views will change THEN!