To feel the Disenfranchised have been Scapegoated.

[Gilead]

Just fed up with a society that has become so incredibly selfish. The vilification of disabled people and the drubbing of benefit claimants whilst managing to forget that most of the people on universal credit are working families. Forgetting that most pensioners have worked and saved all their lives, some still paying tax. And let’s not forget those lazy bastards who are putting on an act in order to get a ‘free’ car.
I predicted this was the way we were headed on mumsnet in 2010. Got called all sorts of names, but, at that point in time people were a lot more understanding of the issues encountered by the disenfranchised.
If you want to come on here and tell me you don’t want to pay extra for someone else to have kids you can’t afford, research it first, look at the (myriad) reasons for this, the figures, the number of women who had extra children during the period. Then think how it would be if you suddenly became disabled, or more severely disabled.
Im off with my carer in a bit. In my Citroen C3 that actually cost me a wee bit more because I had to pay for the wheelchair hoist as well as the (approx) 350 quid every four weeks to cover the lease, and the insurance.

I predicted this was the way we were headed on mumsnet in 2010. In 2010, the Conservatives had just taken over government in the UK under David Cameron. Conservatives held the office of PM and ran the government until July 2024, when Labour came in with Keir Starmer as PM. And yet, you blame Labour for the current state of affairs? How?

How can you possibly know whether or not the people you "see" are abusing the system?

I saw that too. She did not "robustly defend herself". She said her piece and that was it.
She also said she had applied for PIP, was not claiming it, and said she was looking for work.
I have seen many people reference this tiny snippet from question time over and over, and they all embellish it to make her look awful.

Pip payments can be spent on anything so I'm not sure why its supposed to be spent on 'therapy' .Just another typical comment from someone who doesnt achieve a clue how the system works and decides to believe the propaganda.

25% of working aged people are on benefits. 1 in 4. It’s not sustainable. I am more than happy for my tax to go towards supporting parents of disabled children, or disabled/chronically ill people that cannot work. But is that all 11 million in the uk?

The lady with anxiety on question time... this was actually what she said.

"Erm, as someone who’s applied for PIP and knows how traumatic it can be to go through it, I can guarantee you that nobody is applying just for the money. They are applying because they need it and because they have a problem. Like, I have worked before. I’m struggling at the moment to find a job anyway, but it makes it worse being anxious and I think people need to have a bit more compassion. It is so traumatic going through all this assessment and you wouldn't actually do it unless you had a need"

She is getting brought up a lot on here, and people seem to think she was sat laughing in the audience and bragging about benefits. The above is all she said.

No, a lot is people who do work but get a top up anyway because they have high rent costs.

But it is selfish to be angry at disabled people for your problems when you voted for the Tories for 14 years and voted for Brexit.

Why do most people not realise that we are in this position due to Brexit? The other reason is Covid and furlough payments which were beyond anyone’s control. BTW, you’re a hypocrite if you received furlough payments and are now moaning about others receiving ‘free money from the government’. Let me guess, you’re ‘worth’ more? We know how that train of thought ends up…

Today, I heard a political commentator say that the UK would be 30% richer, had we not left the EU.

Not everyone is in a position to reduce their hours at work to fiddle their taxes - some people have the sort of jobs that simply won’t allow them to suddenly work part time.

The lady on question time said she was looking for work. You can also claim PIP and work, as it is not an out of work benefit.

When you are award PIP, you are not told what to spend it on. So the person you read about who is not spending it on therapy is doing nothing wrong. They will have never been told to spend it on therapy, so your little tale does not pass the sniff test.

Many people on PIP do end up using it for food and bills because the cost of living crisis and because UC is not enough to live on.

Benefits bill was 36 billion in 2020.

It’s now 52 billion.

14 billion in 5 years.

And it’s predicted to be 75 billion by 2030

That is not just the case of adding people with high rent.

But whatever way you slice it, this is unsustainable. And the people who will be hurt the most are those most vulnerable who need welfare.

I don’t want to see the welfare system collapse. I have people close to me who are severely disabled who rely on that as a lifeline.

But that is where we are headed. And it’s a dangerous place to be!

Those figures mean zip unless you present them as a percentage of GDP. Of course you can't do that, because it wouldn't present the picture you want it to.

Yes it’s stayed at 10% ish, however that is of a stagnating economy. GDP growth has been weak over the past decade and taking the same percentage is harder to fund.

On top of that, welfare costs are being driven by factors that are getting worse, not better: high housing costs, low productivity, rising disability claims, and a huge increase in people out of the workforce. If those trends continue, welfare will take more of GDP in the future.

Sorry but stuff like removing the child benefit cap is ridiculous, no-one needs 6 kids especially if you never had a chance in hell of actually being able to support them. You can get a mobility car for fucking anxiety, it’s ridiculous!

A slightly odd thread, OP.

@Bringemout no of course you can’t. There are varying levels of PiP.

There are too many net takers, it's unsustainable.

BBC piece focused on a 26 year old young lady, 4 kids under 8, one with SEN, in temp accomodation. No social housing available. Single, not working. The usual questions arise, where is the father/s, why did she have so many kids at such a young age, what the hell did she expect.

Why is it awarded if not to address a particular need?

🥱 Not this weaselly lie again! Educate yourself please.

@UserFront242 She also said she had applied for PIP, was not claiming it, and said she was looking for work.

How does that work? How do you apply for something without claiming it? Surely if you apply for something and go through the assessment, you are claiming it?

What would be the point of applying, waiting for the benefit to be awarded, and then turning down the money?

She may have tried to claim it, that does not mean that her claim was successful does it? It was not clear whether she was actually receiving any money, as she did not state that she was, implicitly.

Since yesterday I've read several verbal attacks on the elderly and several others on "breeders". Makes a change from immigrants and Muslims I suppose but the UK will never improve its lot as long as everyone is fighting each other

I agree on the other two, and used to on 'Jenny' but having experienced it I can assure you UC does not make my PT wages up to £57k a year! (From your later post)
I was earning £28k and then fell ill, had 6 weeks off sick (getting SSP from my employer) and returned to a different job, on a lower wage, and a phased return before the sick note elapsed - so effectively PT hours while I adjusted to the new role and I've just moved up to ft hours in the new role now everyone is happy I can sustain it.
I claimed UC while off sick, and during my phased return, and have had to justify the low hours during that time, repeatedly, plus fill in a capability to work assessment - although I had a sick note and returned to work before I even got the capability to work assessment.
From this month I won't qualify for UC as I'm full time again and although on a lower wage, too much to qualify.
The UC I have received doesn't even make my income up to the £28k I was earning before - never mind £57k!
But the point is, even on more than 16 hours on my gradual return to work, I a) wasn't living the high life and b) wasn't having my earnings supplemented to anywhere near what you say your friend does - and had to explain why I wasn't working 30 hours or more and claiming, and why I wasn't seeking alternative/extra employment to take me to that level.

So if your friend is having 16 hours a week topped up to £57k then we're all doing something wrong because I wasn't even on that before I became ill and needed to claim anything!

This has been an issue for years OP, really nothing new. People love to stomp on the poor because they’re such an easy target. Generally less educated and find it harder to defend themselves as a result. Very, very easy scapegoat.

I grew up poor. Council estate in probably the most deprived city of the UK by all indexes. Mum was a dinner lady and claimed benefits to top this up, also did things like hairdressing on the side to earn extra cash. I worked my way out of this through education. Still don’t earn a phenomenal amount but I have a PhD and I do my best. We’re not eligible for benefits, even child benefit. I don’t care about my taxes helping the disadvantaged, I would much rather this happen than it be fed into the pockets of the super wealthy as the tories did during covid.

We have far too many ‘ vulnerable’ in society and the time is coming when those in work cannot support those not working . No one says the genuinely disabled shouldn’t be supported but everyone else needs to play a part .