What standard of living do you think should be the minimum everyone can afford?

[MondayAgainnn]

What do you think the absolute basic minimum should be?

I think everybody should be able to afford:

Decent food
Safe housing
Any extra medical things needed, including dentistry
Internet package as it is completely necessary nowadays
Enough clothes to stay warm, dry, appropriate trainers for exercising etc
Enough for some discretionary spending - obviously this is harder to quantify, but things like Netflix, a coffee, cinema tickets I feel should be a normal attainable part of life for everyone
Enough to save a bit

Whether it is through work or through benefits I feel everyone in society should be able to have a lifestyle that is dignified, basically comfortable and with room for treats. Not just subsistence level.

What do you think the minimum should be?

@Thebestwaytoscareatory bills haven't come down yet in homes due to the way the energy market works and isn't immediate as bought several months in advance. Bills are due to come down from July as the next set comes in.
Whilst bills are crazy they would have been a hell of a lot worse if the cap hadn't been introduced and prices would have hit 4.5k a year for the average house let alone properties which are poorly insulated and old.

It has come down at the petrol pumps as this is less of a lag on unit price.

They are also taxing the oil industry flip side of that means there have been redundancies in Aberdeen again which has knock on effects to other companies and other peoples jobs but who cares about other people's jobs if they are the bad guys......🙄

Yep this!

I agree with most but not the discretionary spend on Netflix, coffee etc if on benefits. They are luxuries, I've often gone without those.

It's sad if kids don't get more, but ultimately that's the parents choice/responsibility, not for the government to fund. Personal responsibility and all that.

UK society is rich enough to allow much more than subsistence. Going to the cinema now and again is not a luxury.

I think basics are housing, utilities, phone/internet, food.

I then think there needs to be more schemes where children from low income families can access sports clubs etc. many are now getting charity status to be able to provide and many big sponsors (for example Speedo with swimming) are setting up opportunities.

There needs to be automatic cards provided for cheap leisure centre access or free gym pass etc rather than people needing to know about it and have to go in and ask if there's reduction for benefits.

There also needs to be more council run activities in the holidays that's accessible for everyone. Social mobility is being stifled because there are schemes available but they are all for low income families. The city I grew up with did these clubs and you paid a nominal fee and you could offer more if you could afford it - which many families did because it helped keep these clubs running. Those from low income families were given free spaces.

There has been a good scheme since covid of stay, eat and play but these schemes do nothing for social cohesion within communities.

I'd also look into a scheme like Scotland have of catchment schools. Remove the (apparent) choice. Go to your nearest. With all new estates being mixed now with a set percentage of affordable housing this would eventually (imo) slow down the moving to catchment because there wouldn't be enough movement to free up the housing. Once all schools are equally filled with pupils from a variety of backgrounds people will make more fuss about underperforming schools and underfunded education because they won't be able to buy their way out of it.

I do think things like coffee etc are a luxury. However many libraries now have cafes to support with much needed financing. The council could use this by providing low income families with a pre paid card. So all new parents can access baby classes etc and all mix together in the cafe.

I think so much more could be done which would encourage people to support themselves and want to improve their life. Everything is just so bleak atm I fear we have more and more disenfranchised people and it'll make it harder for them - because what's the point when beans on toast is now an expensive meal and not a cheap and easy quick feed.

In order to defend raising the benefits to fund this level of spend you must first ask 2 questions:

1. what taxes would i increase / spend would I cut to fund this, and;

2. if you were going to raise this money, could that money be spend more wisely elsewhere, such as by improving the nhs services to treat people who’s I’ll health is preventing them from working.

I think funding public services such as the nhs properly is more important than ensuring everyone can afford Netflix and a holiday.

Once all schools are equally filled with pupils from a variety of backgrounds people will make more fuss about underperforming schools and underfunded education because they won't be able to buy their way out of it.

Believe me, plenty of parents buy their way into good catchment areas in Scotland - East Renfrewshire and East Dumbartonshire houses prices reflect this. Generally speaking schools tend to have a relatively mixed demographic but there’s still a degree of buying your way into a nice catchment.

Going to the cinema now and again is not a luxury.

I think it is. Along with buying coffees out, paying for Netflix/Sky/Disney Plus and upgrading to the newest iPhone.

We are not particularly hard up at the moment, but back in our more skint days, we didn’t do any of those things as they would have caned through our monthly money very quickly.

Unfortunately our country is wet and damp but I think an absolute basic should be to anyone living in mould and sorting out mould should like like a natinal amnesty.

Yep happens in the North East as well!
There is a secondary in Aberdeen and all new housing estates around it have to sign a form saying they won't be in the catchment for it as its already oversubscribed with parents moving to be in catchment!
You can also apply to an out of catchment school you have to make a case for it but siblings attendance or childcare are reasons so a eutopia of the Scottish school system is a bit of rose tinted specs

Exactly. When I was at primary school my father contracted a rare illness and became disabled. My mother had to become his carer so we had no income. I wonder how many years salary the PP thinks they should have had in the bank in order to prepare for such an eventuality? 12, because that was how long he lived? 6? 3?

Cases such as ours and that of your friend are not as rare as some might think.

how about a military barracks style provision. So everyone gets food, roof over their head and clothes. If they want something else then they need to provide it themselves. But the state provides the roof over everyone head in an emergency.

Ah, the workhouse. Something right wing politicians have apparently expressed approval of.

military barracks style

And let's separate men, women and children and break up the family. Which is what often happened in such places.

Noontimes · Today 20:48
In order to defend raising the benefits to fund this level of spend you must first ask 2 questions:

1. what taxes would i increase / spend would I cut to fund this, and;
2. * *
3. if you were going to raise this money, could that money be spend more wisely elsewhere, such as by improving the nhs services to treat people who’s I’ll health is preventing them from working.
4. * *
5. I think funding public services such as the nhs properly is more important than ensuring everyone can afford Netflix and a holiday.

THIS ^

Cases such as ours and that of your friend are not as rare as some might think.😘

Indeed they aren’t that rare, a colleagues wife had a stroke aged 35 which effectively ended her working life - she was previously fit and healthy.

Folk are good at suggesting others live to a much lower standard than they would want for themselves. We’re all one life changing event away from being reliant on the state and while some folk can make provision for the unforeseen, few could make enough provision to cover them in the event of not being able to work permanently. I’d like to think folk with disabilities/caring responsibilities deserve more than subsistence level support.

I think everyone should have as a minimum:

Universal childcare free at point of use from the age of 0 to start of full time education
Free access to summer schools for kids
Free education up to level of masters with bursaries/stipend if you are poor
Affordable non-processed and healthy food
Secure accommodation (either they own a home or have good tenancy protections & affordable rent)
Free access to medical treatment
Free access to dental treatment
A laptop and internet
A smart phone
Access to affordable leisure centres, gym and exercise class
A minimum of one holiday a year if you have kids
Affordable access or free access to enrichment activities for kids like music lessons, sports, dance, crafts etc

I agree with you, OP.

A few treats (coffee, cinema) should be part of the minimum, otherwise what is the point?
The benefit bashers on MN want to see anyone claiming benefits to be eating gruel in sack cloth and staring at bare walls. Meets their minimum of housing, clothing and food.

I am on benefits, and I live for my coffees with friends. It gives me a reason to get up and out. And if I am struggling to do that, then I can find something on Netflix.

You do realise that families live in military barracks, right? Like this one.
https://forceschildrenseducation.org.uk/base/glencorse

The wording may be emotive, but the idea isn't. Assisted living, retirement flats etc already exist. What about family sized flats?

For some reason British people are obsessed with 'outdoor space'. While simultaneously complaining about the shit weather. Everyone must have a 3 bed semi with a garden, or they're living like battery hens.

Other countries like Singapore (also a tiny island!) have well-designed, social housing flats. In London a lot of other nationalities are also happy to live in them.

Not much military accommodation looks like that. This is more like it.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10075141/Britains-army-families-forced-live-houses-riddled-mould-urine.html

Finland had a trial for a universal basic income
$600 per month no strings attached
I assume that this was on top of accommodation

So you are saying they are committing benefit fraud by pretending to be disabled? Even disability benefits are not enough money to constantly go on constant long haul holidays.

I'd add on dentistry and glasses. They're unaffordable to many people now.

Food
shelter
warmth
water
electricity
clothing

I think childminders and childcare should be free and also enrichment activities for kids like sports, music or language lessons.

Everyone should also have access to a smart phone and gym.

That's a shocking thing to say regarding the disabled. Disgusting.