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.

Can I ask then what is your solution? We can critique someone's life choices till the cows come home but it doesn't alter the material situation. Would you withdraw that support from this woman and her children? Are you prepared for what life in this country would go back to if we removed support?

PIP takes ages to apply for. If it goes to mandatory consideration and then tribunal, you are looking at a couple of years to get it awarded.
This lady may have just started her claim but not yet been awarded it.

If we want there to be a safety net in case the worst happens (life changing injury/illness, disability, death, loss of job, infinite reasons) we need to accept we all have to pay in.

I've never drawn out. And there may not even be a pension by the time I get there. But I accept the need for funding. Any compassionate society should. Either that or we exist as America does. NOT a place I ever want to live again.

There being a safety net to draw on when the worst happens is rather dependant on people not drawing on it when their circumstances really don’t (or shouldn’t) qualify, just because they’ve found a loophole enabling them to.

I don't believe anyone is able to take the piss with benefits anymore.

I have a friend who's been told there is a 25 week wait for her claim to be assessed. She's going to be seriously in debt by the time she hears if she's accepted or not.

Exactly this

I don’t think people have become selfish. There is a great deal of compassion for the disabled.

Working people to coin a phrase are fed up with the feeing that there are people claiming benefits which they are paying for whilst making no attempt to find work if they able enough to work, and maintaining a lifestyle that some who aren’t receiving benefits would find it hard to achieve. They rightly feel they should not pay for the choice of having more children, for their leisure time/or time with their children when they can’t stay at home and spend time with their own children and are juggling work/family life and leisure time.

“And let’s not forget those lazy bastards who are putting on an act in order to get a ‘free’ car.”
It’s not the free car. It’s that it’s a brand new fresh out of the showroom with insurance and tax car. How is that fair to the millions of the low paid in second hand cars that cost a fortune in tax, insurance and repairs.

It’s not the single mums getting top up credit, people object to. It’s the families that have no way of supporting themselves aside from having more kids.

Also you only have to look at the circumstances of deprived kids. I despair of turning up to another home of teens with the gardens full of litter, parents sat at home in a filthy house. More money won’t change the mentality of can’t be arsed.

It would cost a fortune to implement, and would not be regular enough for people to cope.

I'm pretty sure finances are checked. Certainly they are for DLA. To see where the money is going.

My son gets DLA and my finances have never been checked.

No, you have no checks as to what it’s spent on nor should there be.

YANBU, op.

I see some people here pointing to some outliers who get dragged out to say 'oh look, isn't this awful' as if they are representative of most people on benefits when they are not at all. If half a million kids are going to be lifted out of poverty by removing the benefit cap, then good - I don't want or need proof that all their parents 'deserve my money'. The fact is most of those people will still need that extra money even for basics.

I don't think anyone 'has kids for the benefits' - the benefits don't cover the cost of a child, let alone give you a better life the more kids you have!

I don't think anyone 'has kids for the benefits' - the benefits don't cover the cost of a child, let alone give you a better life the more kids you have!

But what are the alternatives? How can those who left college with little, have no soft skills, can only get unsteady min wage work afford to rent a flat? Why wouldn’t you have a baby?

Because they would still be worse off with all the cost of having had a child than if they hadn't? Having a baby isn't a one way ticket to easy street, far from it!

I thought the lifting of the cap was an extra £70-£80 per week per child. That’s a fair bit of cash.

In what way are they worse off?

Having a child entitles you to help with rent, benefits and lots of perks. Theres no chance of social housing near me without “dependents”.
Babies need little, there’s lots of support. Basics like formula are discounted.
Given a choice between being a low achiever with a child or without, it’s much easier with one. Plus theres the pull of having “done something” by raising a child. It’s an important job.

I've said it before & I'll say it again. If anyone on here 'knows' that someone is claiming any benefit, shop them. It's simple & I believe it can be anonymous. I've never met a whinger who's done this because they never have the courage of their convictions & also are whinging about people they don't actually know enough about to form any real judgment.
I always hope they will fall off a ladder or something to see for themselves how fabulously lucrative being disabled is.

Unless you live somewhere with plenty of social housing, there's very little chance of it with dependants these days too.

I think this is a really valid point.
The terms
Worker/taxpayer and Disabled
are not mutually exclusive terms. I can't work full time due to a disability, I'm struggling to work part time tbh but can't afford to stop due to the amount of tax DH and I are paying. I can have a disability and want to pay less tax.

Wanting to pay less tax so I can work less and be in less pain is not ableist.

Wanting the tax I do pay to go towards the nhs more than on benefits so I can access the care I need is not selfish.

Sometimes the disenfranchised (such as those with disabilities) are also the ones being asked to give even more of their money to the public coffers. Who knows how much longer i will be able to work. I need my money too!

Exactly!
I work full time yet due to my disability I have no quality of life outside of work (and because it is fluctuating and "invisible" it is nearly impossible to get benefits even though my life is incredibly limited)

I have a very responsible and stressful job in the public sector. It is underpaid and even after promotions our disposable income is worse not better than 10 years ago.

My car is tiny and 10 years old and I don't know how I will repair it but I depend on it.

We had a cleaner who gave me some quality of life because it meant she did some of the housework (DH does the rest and the cooking and the DIY as I cannot). But we had to stop as money was too tight

Good and timely medical care is important to keep me out of ICU. I am lucky to get a medical exemption for my prescriptions but this is cancelled by having to pay for private dental treatment and private hospital tests.

Why should my very hard earnt taxes fund anything beyond the basics for others? Why does anyone who can afford a big upfront payment on a luxury car think they deserve benefits? Why do people game the system and work minimum hours to keep up their benefits?

Welfare should be a safety net not an ever rising list of demands and entitlement

It would be great if there were some sort of tax reduction for those with disabilities.
Would probably work out cheaper in long run - if you could work part time you may end up working longer and paying more in overall. Vs burning yourself out, needing hospital care and/or stopping altogether and need to claim benefits.

Re your car - look up 'Access to work' - can support with transport to work and other bits I think.

I feel that at the moment unless you’re a white working class man you’re pretty much fair game.

This has to be a joke. There is not a single demographic in western society more vilified, ignored, and undermined than working class white males.

*fraudulently

Tsk!

The relative that I have that has recently applied was told to keep receipts in case of auditing.