If you're an unemployed waster then you should have a vasectomy!!!

[sirlee66]

Ben Bradley, an MP, wrote in a blogpost, 6 years ago, that the country would be soon “drowning in a vast sea of unemployed wasters” if workless families had four or five children while others limited themselves to one or two.
This is what he said:

''It’s horrendous that there are families out there that can make vastly more than the average wage, (or in some cases more than a bloody good wage) just because they have 10 kids. Sorry but how many children you have is a choice; if you can’t afford them, stop having them! Vasectomies are free.

There are hundreds of families in the UK who earn over £60,000 in benefits without lifting a finger because they have so many kids (and for the rest of us that’s a wage of over £90,000 before tax!).

People have to take responsibility for their own lives, and if they are struggling but working hard to help themselves then they should get help. But if they choose to have 10 kids they should take responsibility for that choice and look after them, not expect everyone else to foot the bill!

Families who have never worked a day in their lives having 4 or 5 kids and the rest of us having 1 or 2 means it’s not long before we’re drowning in a vast sea of unemployed wasters that we pay to keep!''

So What to do you think? Do you agree with Ben Bradley or do you think he is being unreasonable?

I'm on the fence tbh.

2 women I went to school with.
1 has 9 kids, never worked. She was quite vocal when she had her first that she was doing it to get a council house (she did) and would never have to work (she hasn't)
Another one, has 5 kids, when the cap was announced very quickly had 3 more kids (10 months between each).Her and her partner do claim benefits and have a council house but he has always worked on top.

For a while I lived up North, not saying all of the North is like this btw.
Pretty much everyone I met on the estate where my friend lived was on benefits and often would brag about it. Lots of kids, and this went on down the generations. A lot of them did use it as a lifestyle choice.

So while I don't think everyone does it, I do think quite a few do, and it's played down and marked as benefit bashing because it makes people uncomfortable.

I personally have never claimed any benefits and hope I never will need to. Like I said I'm on the fence as it doesn't make any difference to me (I no longer live in the UK).

Oh and I was in work (as was DH) after wed had all our kids. Then circumstances changed.

I understand what he meant, there are people like this even though they are a minority.

My cousin had 2 children as a teenager, got a council house etc and didn't work. When her youngest child was coming up to 12 and she was going to be put on JSA she had another child. She's now mid-30s and hasn't worked a day in her life.

Often children born into these situations replicate their parents behaviour because that's all that they know.

How would you judge who the wasters are?

Having said that there are a number of people who will have children and be reliant on benefits in order to provide for those children. The people providing those benefits will have no say in who has what/how many children.

That isn't fair but how on earth do you police it.

And there are plenty of jobs around. We have almost full employment and yet for some the hours just don't suit. I have a friend who wont work unless she gets a role term time only. She has been looking for 3 years and overall been a SAHM for 15.

Yep, these benefits scumbags have no morals for having lots of kids. Yet our own (corrupt) government are angels when they're supplying guns to third world countries.

Totally disagree with how he has gone about this communication and don't agree with enforcing vasectomies but there is a point in there somewhere
DH and I work our balls off to pay for childcare. Use lunch breaks to come out of work and bring the kids from school to after school daycare.
I can think of at least 10 couples I know who have kids... 2 of them have 5! And none of them work. Never have done. When the baby hits school age, they have more babies!
It really isn't fair, i would love more kids
My boiler went just before Christmas and I literally cried handing over £2k to replace it.
My family member had the same issue, she just called her housing officer and got it replaced the following week.
I believe you should live within your means and those who have kids with no means to support them financially are irresponsible

Crazy - that is very true. The kids repeat what their parent has done and the cycle continues

He’s my MP 🙄 So far he seems very good at arguing on FB and Twitter with people who disagree with him, and he’s excellent at self promotion. Doesn’t actually seem to do a lot though. Unfortunately most people I know in the area agree with him. It’s a poor area and we’re all being encouraged to race to the bottom.

He also had to apologise this week for ‘joking’ about watching porn in his office. I despair I really do, there’s no one to vote for in this area. He’s predecessor was lazy due to being in a safe about seat and Lib Dem’s withdrew their candidate to try to keep labour in.

No one should have 10 kids.

No one should have a big family these days because the planet can't even afford to support the current human population.

Lol no. Two of my kids are working towards careers.

Can I ask who the fuck Ben Bradley thinks will be either driving the bus he gets onto as an old man and the bus I will want to be getting onto as an old woman...might just be the kid of one of those "wasters".
The future needs kids. From a selfish point of view, I will need a nurse or a doctor or a care assistant or someone to cremate me and put me in an urn.
Children are not a waste! They matter for lots of reasons your fucking moron.
Wonder what his kids have done to se the universe alight then

I don't agree that we are drowning in a sea of wasters and the man is a total twat, but there is something to what he is saying.

If you already have children and fall on hard times then I've got absolutely no issue with you receiving benefits, similarly if you cannot work for reasons of illness/disability/unable to find work again you should also receive state help.

But, if you choose not to work because you'd rather be a SAHP then the state should not pay for that. If you are already in receipt of state benefits then you absolutely should not then decide to have more children.

Those who fall into the latter categories are wasters in my eyes, but I blame the system for allowing it not the individuals for taking full advantage.

No system should be set up such that a person/persons can be financially "better off" than if they were earning minimum wage; minimum wage should always be higher than benefit.

The assumption that people on benefits are scroungers, lazy and feckless is propaganda which suits the government, the right wing media and channel 5.

It is also absolute horseshit. There are, of course, some people who choose to screw the system, but the mainstream view that people on benefits are somehow public property, and are to be derided and mocked at every opportunity pisses me off.

In all honesty, I think people do it because it makes them feel better about themselves, gives them someone to belittle to big themselves up. Which is pretty pathetic when you think about it.

Grandmother (never worked) - 4 kids

Kid1 (never worked) - Has 1DC (never worked) - That DC has 2 DC
Kid 2 (never worked) - Has 3DC - 1DC (never worked) now has 2 DC, other 2 are too young.
Kid 3 (never worked) - Has 4 DC (none ever worked) - 1 of those DC has 2 DC, other 3 each have 3
Kid 4 (never worked) - Has 2 DC - One of those (never worked) now has 1 DC, other is too young.

This is an actual family I knew.

Child Benefit has not been capped at two children.
www.gov.uk/child-benefit

The child element of Child Tax Credit/Universal Credit has been capped at two children for children born after a certain date.

Of course children are not a waste , what a ridiculous thing to say
What is a waste is modeling for them a life on benefits where you can't be bothered to get off your arse and work because the state will provide for you

Why when someone makes a reasonable statement others talk about the government, Amazon or Starbucks to justify why we should leave the poor benefits claimaints alone.

Why - there is an issue here that does need to be addressed and I think benefits should be capped to two children. It comes back to personal responsibility yet again. Something I think others want to excuse.

I know my cousin used the benefits systems and its rules for her own ends (not working and having multiple boyfriends coming and going) and still in mid 40's has not done a days work in her life.

Why, whenever benefits threads come up, does nobody write about people they know on benefits who have struggled massively because of sanctions/cuts, or someone who went hungry waiting for UC to kick in, or had to choose between heating or eating, or just going about their day doing their best despite being given an absolute pittance by the government, or lost their home due to the bedroom tax?

Because that wouldn’t give the hordes something to froth over. That’s why. It’s shameful.

crazycatlady 12? You go on JSA when your youngest turns 5. You are legally required to look for at least 16 hours a week of work once your youngest is in full time education. When I was on income support I had to attend a job centre meeting every 6 months and they come down hard on you so I don't know how somebody could manage to stay on benefits until their child is 12 unless there are exceptional circumstances.

It's not propaganda, it's fact, and it goes on a lot more than you would think
Government statistics for benefit fraud seen to suggest it's only a tiny proportion, but that's just the ones that have been caught
Personal experience shows me that it's far more prevalent than anyone would imagine
I could give countless examples of people I've dealt with who are claiming and shouldn't be , people who can work but won't , you have no idea the lengths some people will go to not to work, I have seen it first hand time after time

I think if benefits didn't pay for lifestyles like those mentioned, there would surely be more available for the people who have suffered due to cuts elsewhere in the system.

My Dh's ex has six children now, all with different fathers all gone from the scene. She is quite forthright that this is so that she never needs to work. The system is wrong. I guess we can't blame the people who take advantage of that flawed system or appeal to their 'better nature' not to abuse it.