Welfare spending to rise by £73.2bn to £406.2bn

[topicalaffair]

Over the next five years, the OBR is forecasting that UK welfare spending will rise by £73.2bn to £406.2bn.

How does everyone feel about this? I’m livid because I pay lots of tax. I don’t mind paying tax to maintain a civilised society - but this? This is surely taking the piss and will result in weaker and weaker services as the amount of £ available reduces day by day.

YANBU - it’s totally deranged. The every growing uk population can’t function effectively on such a benefits for all basis.

YABU - this welfare spending bill is truly representative of need.

Rtb should have never happened.
UC top ups to pay private rent must cost the UK a fortune

Would they live in dorms too or would they be allowed to live in houses?

Many didn’t particularly the women. MIL has worked the equivalent of about 15 full time years. She worked for 5 until she had kids, then took 10 years out, then very part time after.

This argument is so tedious. Why are the two things mutually exclusive? It’s not like there’s one pot of money labelled ‘immigrants and veterans’ with the majority of it being allocated to the immigrants. We’re one of the world’s richest countries, we should be able to look after all society’s vulnerable equally. Take the money from those that can afford it.

Of course when you suggest such a thing, the high earners tend to get very vocal don’t they? Why should they give up one of their holidays in the Caribbean or send their kids to a cheaper school, when someone on benefits should be living off bread and water instead. It’s all they deserve after all. The high earners have worked hard for their money! The people on minimum wage who can’t pay their bills without universal credit are just lazy bastards who deserve a shit life. After all, who needs care assistants and bin men? Bloody lowlifes should get a proper job.

I wish you people could hear yourselves. But there’s little point wishing.

I see we're back to workhouses on this thread. Benefit bashers - you can set your watch by them, and play bingo too.

So to be clear, you don't care if you're ignorant, thick and uneducated on the topic or if your ideas will make people suffer, you just want the government to keep the money you pay instead of it helping others (because let's face it, you'd never see the benefit of a reduced welfare bill).

Yes pain relief is all disabled people need 🙄 Not any sorts of psychotherapy, physiotherapy, going out to groups, having any sort of life whatsoever.
They will have to "earn" that right.

Agree everyone says ‘how hard it is’ yet the numbers are breathtaking

Mixed sex dorms are risky, you'd face some backlash on that. Hard to keep families together otherwise though.

If they aren't compulsory, how are you going to encourage people to go there?

In work benefits are a disgrace. Employers should pay an actual living wage rather than expect tax payers to pick up the bill so they can increase their profits.

Similarly, the amount of tax payers money that is spent on hugely inflated rental costs. It's not my job to provide someone with their unearned income through buy to let

I imagine pp would say go there as a condition of getting any benefits.

So actually compulsory unless you want to starve.

Hey, don't knock me, my taxes (and all us other mugs) who pay for this stuff.

Yep, I'd vote for benefit reform tomorrow.

Both my grandmothers left the workforce after getting married and having children. That was pretty normal in their generation.
My paternal grandmother never returned to work as she became a full time carer for my grandfather. She worked in a factory for a couple of years as a teen and that was the only job she had.

Yep. The benefit bashers always conveniently overlook the fact that the majority of a family’s monthly UC payment is going straight into the hands of a private landlord. But that’s fine isn’t it? Private landlords work hard and show initiative! They should be congratulated!

I am not talking about criminals. People have total freedom and it is not for the government or anyone to tell them where to live.

The point is the welfare system would be seriously reduced. If someone does want state assistance only the basics would be available. Frankly, if we do not make changes even this won't be provided. How can people not see where we are heading without a total overhaul.

As I have said, not compulsory. Take it or leave it.

What does "a few hours" mean though? No one pays NIC until they earn over £12,570 pro rata which is roughly NMW (adult rate) for around half of full time hours. That's not "a few hours" - it's quite a lot, say, 20 hours per week.

To pay a whopping £36 per week in NIC, she'll be earning well above NIC and working at least full time hours, so something is wrong with those figures!

I am worried though. I live in a stereotypical ‘middle class liberal London leftie’ world. And a few friends have said they will now vote for Reform. A mix of Labour, Lib dem and Green voters. I am not white, I work in the NHS, and it makes me worried for my kids and the future of our country even more.

Mixed disabilities too.
A young man in the midst of a psychotic episode that is not severe enough for help, next to a middle aged lady with MS.
I can see this working. Not.

Why is the answer always to take from those who have the least to give while ignoring the CEOs/shareholders of the likes of Amazon, Starbucks, Walmart/Asda?

You'd get a fuck tonne more if you went after them than Joe Bloggs, who "gets PIP for his bad back".

Of course they don't have total freedom if the choices are dorms or starve.

I was just wondering if dorms would apply to disabled people too? I'm assuming from that response it is a yes.

How would a wheelchair fit in these basic dorms?

Sorry, would you like me to kiss your feet and thank you for so nobly and selflessly donating your money out of the goodness of your heart (and not because, y'know, it's tax that you don't have a choice whether to pay or not)? Would that make you feel better, give you a little ego massage?

How much of in work benefits are to part timers though? Didn't 16 hours a week used to be the 'optimal' work rate to maximise benefits?

In work benefits should only be available to those who work full time. Unemployment benefits should be capped at 6 months and only for those who have paid in.

You don't pay any NI on earnings up to £242/week so if she's on minimum wage, she must be working more than a few hours each week if she's paying over £36/week in NI

I said they would have medical assistance. That includes all aspects.

Almost no one should be out of work. Unless you have a partner, savings or inheritance that pays for you to be a stay at home parent or unemployed person of leisure.

Very few disabilities stop you working. We should support people with disabilities that can work ( I have a blind sibling who wants to work with the support needed for her). Those who can't work at all due to a learning disability or severe physical disability or illness should be well cared for my the state. If we freed up money from the work shy, those with genuine need could have more. Chronic fatigue, anxiety etc is treatable not a disability. No you are not a carer to your wife with CFS. You can work

Don't have kids 5 minutes after meeting a partner or 3 kids when you can only afford 1. Stop this insane working so many hours before you lose benefits and allowing people to just work 15 hours by choice to keep the free money flowing. I work with someone who only does two days so it doesn't affect her benefits wtaf. How dare she.

Benefits should come in the form of vouchers for clothes, food etc. only redeemable against decent foods, not Coco pops or cans of coke.

We should have budgeting, parenting, relationship and cooking classes as required to help those in need of skill development. There is good childcare support now from 9 months.

Housing should be community focused blocks of flats ( stop building all over the precious greenbelt) with community allotments, orchards, play spaces in them.

We can't carry on funding crap life choices and also causing generational under performance.