To think we need to prioritise defence/Ukraine spending?

[Wildflowers99]

I’ll admit I had no idea how depleted our military has become until a few weeks ago. I was absolutely staggered to read we now spend more on PIP and DLA than our entire military.

I feel like slowly all of our public spending has been funnelled into health, benefits and social care, leaving everything else in a very poor state. Any time anyone has suggested spending money on anything apart from ‘freezing pensioners, the homeless or disabled’ they get shouted down (I am disabled btw, so I do understand the need).

AIBU to think we need to urgently address our spending priorities and as a nation wake up to the fact we’ve been overspending on the above for too long?

I will ask again Did you get furlough?

No.

It is, but not £700 expensive in most cases. I’m disabled and have extra costs of £20+ a week, I just absorb this into my salary (which is under 30k). We can’t legislate to ensure every unfairness in a person’s life is financially compensated. And nobody earning over £30k should be claiming any benefit at all. These are luxuries which we cannot afford.

I wouldn’t give PIP for mental health reasons unless the person has a severe learning disability or is under section.

You are just showing how little you understand PIP. If someone is under section, they are in hospital. And if you are in hospital, your PIP is stopped if you are there for 30+ days. It gets reinstated when you go home.

The fact you would specifically target people with MH problems in the guise of saving money, is telling.

Reeves described the worklessness crisis as a stain on our country today and when asked about how we'll cover the additional defence spending she highlighted her preference for efficiencies.

I'd love to just have disability costs of £20 a week

According to Scope the average is around £1k per month in disability costs

Telling of what? We have far too many people with MH diagnoses now to support them with PIP. Look at how much it is increasing. At what point do we dial it back? When it reaches 30% of spending? 60%? When? There has to be a cut off, so don’t give me a feeble ‘can’t put a price on supporting the vulnerable’ type answer.

I think they’ve realised we can no longer support this number of people out of work and/or claiming PIP. It shouldn’t be a shock to anyone.

Will you dial the support back and instead give them the therapy they nd, etc on the NHS?

Telling that you don't think MH issues are worthy of PIP, and that they are the new bad back.
Why not cut money to people with physical health issues? I mean, give them a wheelchair, put a ramp in their home... that's them sorted, right? Why do they need more money?

And watch economic growth shrink even further.

Raising taxes for whatever purpose = lower economic growth.

Rachel Reeves found that out the hard way on her last budget.

I don’t disagree we need to increase defence spending but where the money comes from is difficult. I think Ed Milliband said recently that it’s the last chance for centrist politics and I think he is right. If people don’t feel better off then next general election we are going to see a lot more reform voters.

The welfare bill is bonkers though. I claim UC although I work full time, (kids) life is shockingly expensive. The washing machine broke down and I genuinely don’t have the money to replace, the roof needs work blah de blah and I’m better off than lots of people.

I do bleat on about this but I think a massive problem is housing, we could pay hundreds of thousands in rent for one person over their lifetime. Then a private landlord owns a property. Makes no sense. Build houses with infrastructure, schools, doctors, transport links. At least then they’d own an asset.

Therapy makes virtually no difference sadly. How many people do you know who have had, say, 3 months of therapy and then never really needed it again as it was transformative? It’s more akin to venting - it makes them feel slightly better for a few days, but needs to be kept up indefinitely, at huge cost.

Because the money has a tangible effect on physical health. You can buy a wheelchair and that will give you mobility and solve that particular issue (as well as it can be). There is no equivalent to a wheelchair for mental health.

If you are on PIP for MH (assume you are), how much therapy have you had? Has it worked?

@Lovelysummerdays there definitely needs to be rent caps. I think a landlord should only be able to charge X amount for a 1/2/3 bed in a certain postcode, or % of property value, because the profits landlords make for substandard mouldy housing is a disgrace.

Of course there is an equivalent for MH. Someone might not be able to use buses due to mental health, so will rely on taxis. That is one expense. Another is using the money to employ a cleaner if that is something they struggle with.
The trouble is, people are claiming PIP now a a way to top up the basic costs of living. it is going on things like rent and bills, when it was never intended for that.

You asked me about therapy on another thread. I have had lots of therapy, and it has worked in that it keeps me out of hospital. You might think it was useless as I still can't work, but if you knew me personally, you would know what a big thing staying out of hospital was. My life was absolutley awful.

substandard housing happens in social housing too

I personally do not believe the state should be funding taxis for mental health reasons. I realise it’s ‘controversial’, but I think the individual needs to conquer their inability to do normal things, rather than the state funding what is essentially a continuing phobia or aversion.

As for the therapy, well unfortunately this is what I mean. Hardly anybody unemployed with MH issues seems to go back to work again, so I’m not sure throwing ££££ at them in therapy is really a cost effective option any more. Or paying out £££ in PIP.

I realise this is upsetting but we have to be realistic.

Yes and we urgently need more social housing. I think the govt should buy and renovate disused buildings into flats as a matter of priority.

I tell you its substandard and you say we need more of it

No, I said new housing needs to be created.

So, I got to my GP and say I can't use buses. What happens? They say "don't use them then". That is literally what happens.
If you are ND and that is why you can't use buses, then no therapy is going to help with that. You might need someone to go with you... and that is something that gets you points for PIP.

Therapy saved my life. If I had not had it, I would not be here. But because it has not got me back to work, I should never have had it?
That is cold. Even people who are terminally ill still have treatment to make their life a bit more pleasant. They are not a lost cause, so why would someone with MH issues be?
Of course, if I am dead, I cost the taxpayer £0. More money for Ukraine, yes? Make sure you stamp my name on a missile.

I think it’s all very well saying what money the taxpayer should be giving you when you don’t earn it and see the effort that goes into tax paying. I feel like you want the issue to be moral when it comes to being given the money, yet financial when you then say how much and why it’s a problem not getting it.

Nobody should be getting PIP for mental health taxis, and I stand by that opinion.

No money for taxis, then no getting to appointments etc. MH gets worse.

The only thing I can think of that would mentally stop someone being able to use a bus and having to use taxis would be if they had a phobia. Just giving them the money for a taxi is not helping them in the longterm. Better to help them conquer their phobia which will benefit their mental health.