To think that the welfare state is too generous if people in council flats have way more stuff than those on middle income can afford (no really lets have a discussion)

[splodge2001]

Maybe it's where I live (central london) maybe it's me (hmm, I don't think so) and It's definitely something that's been ruminating around my head for a while. An argument I've tried to unpick but I always come to the same conclusion.

I'm sure I'm going to be lynched but I'm keen to get other people's perspective on this....Here we go...

Where I live private housing is expensive and intermingled with social housing. It's hard to tell the difference between the social housing and the private dwellings. Certainly on the open market they fetch very similar prices. I'm feeling grumpy because we (DH and I) pay a lot of tax which goes to the people down the road in social housing, of course we should pay tax to support those on low earnings BUT, it does start to grate when though people in subsidised housing seem to have much bigger disposable incomes. eg. everyone I know who lives in the council flats near us can afford a car, we cannot. They can afford several holidays per year, we cannot

Isn't the welfare state just a bit too generous to enable those on low incomes to afford more than those on higher incomes? Surely the point of welfare isn't to subsidise cars or 42inch TVs.

I'm sure I'll be told to move out of London if I want more but this doesn't address the issue that I'm raising. Why should I subsidise people living in central london when I cant afford to live here myself.

Analogy moment....

I have 5k and would like to buy a car, instead I'm forced to give up my 5k to the government, who instead gives it to someone else so that they can buy a car. Boo hoo!!!

Go on let the stoning begin!!!!

Haven't read the whole thread, but i get the jist....

I live in a housing association house. I am not on benefits. I am a single mum working all hours god sends to pay my bills. You may feel my rent is low but to me it is massive. Once i have paid my rent and council tax i have very little to live on each month.

I work very hard and will do this to enable us to just get by each month.

I haven't had a holiday in six years and my car is an old banger.

Please read this and i would be interested to hear your reply.

at least she didn't put "Rhodesia" which is probably what my late dear granny would have put as thay was what it was called when her brother emigrated there......

that's very true - that would have SO much worse (actually bles her I don't think she'd have known what "Rhodesia" was )

"someone, I cannot recall who, complained that they had an "undiagnosed" back complaint and why should they be made to answer questions about it"

That was me, I didn't object to being asked questions. I objected to my answers being discounted. My doctor can apparently say what they like about my back problem, and have in fact signed me off work for it. I also have a letter from my physio backing that up. But I got told that does not count, I also got told that being unable to sit up for more than 20 minutes at a time wasn't enough of a reason to get additional help.

Splodge I live in Brighton there are some beautiful converted victorian houses here.. that is till you step inside.

Basically you are handed a form to fill in and all they do is add up how many hours assistance you need. Seeing as my back is so bad so much of the time I've just stopped doing things that require assistance. Aside from beihg helped in and out of bed/chairs/bath, and up stairs, I don't require that much assistance. Therefore I can't get help.
I have to pay a lot to get to doctors appointments, hospital appointments and physio appointments, but that comes out of what little benefits I have.

My partner has ME, which is the same thing again. If his ME is bad he just doesn't do anything, and therefore requires no assistance.

Let me tell you about council housing where I work and you can judge for yourself...

Roughly half of all our tenants receive Housing Benefit, so presumably the rest either work or have a large enough pension or other investment not to qualify.

About a quarter of our tenants live in sheltered housing. These are small (usually 1-bed) flats and bungalows for the over 60s who can still live independently but benefit from the extra support of warden cover and communal facilities. Typically in a 30 flat scheme there might be about six cars parked outside.

We do have quite a lot of tenants who are single parents. Often following the breakdown of a relationship.

Judge if you like...

Cassell,

You are an idiot. A complete and total one at that.

For one, attacking my fiancee about her back problem.

Secondly, 'undiagnosed' does not mean the problem does not exist. It just means that there is not enough information to go on for the doctors to make a full and proper diagnosis and give it an actual medical name, so to speak.

You just try and deal with problems we've experienced, and then see how the JSA people treat YOU. See how little - if any - money you get. Then come back and tell us that the welfare state provides too much.

I have a friend in this situation - they seem to have endless holidays and a new car every year. They have their own home but receive a lot of benefits. However, she recently confessed that she was earning £400 a month cash in hand AND they have massive debts.

She also had a car accident recently (someone into the back of them), and she pushed the whole ambulance chasing compensation thing and got £1,000 for 'damages to her DD's health'. Shocking, seeing as she had to tell her DD to lie to the GP about having whiplash.

Terrible behavior, and not how I would chose to conduct my life, but ultimately, you can't judge other people's lifestyles. They're never quite what you think!

x

Oh the joys of a HA house with no room of his own for DS to wibble in and ruling out any chance of sleep-training even if I wanted to means I am up and on this thread at this ungodly hour.

alwayslooking to clarify, my comment about the essential-ness of violin lessons at £25 per term was supposed to be followed by a wink emoticon not a bloody biscuit and I am truly sorry about the latest developments r.e your DH.

Good to see expat back here too fighting the good fight.

usually kitchens and bathrooms windows are done on a 20 year rolling programme.

lets face it as lovley as they are when they are first put in, they are not the highest quality - 20 years later....

you know what its quite nice to see that there are a few people here that disagree with the OP. who really is clueless!

I will never in a million years understand why the HA that owns my house about 15 years ago, put wooden window frames in. Give it another 5 years and the whole lot will need replacing. Had they used upvc ones then they'd still be fine.

DP and I live in a council house with our 3 children. We both work hard for what we have but at the end of it when we retire we'll still have to find rent, whereas most post who have a mortgage will have paid it off by the time they retire.

Owning our own home?? it's something we cannot do.

We can only afford a holiday this year for the first time in 6 years, We are off to Center Parcs, we have to take them out of school to go otherwise we would never afford it,

We dont get any benefits.

I'm on benefits because of a disability making me unable to work and as a single parent who lives in a council flat (although new building) once I pay my bills I struggle to make sure I have enough bread and milk in every week to make my DD school lunch box.

I have a car which is 10yrs old, and i only managed to purchase due to a large refund of nurseries fees due to me.

everything else within my flat has either come 2nd hand from family or freecycle as I can't afford to go out and buy all new.

I'm on benefits because of a disability making me unable to work and as a single parent who lives in a council flat (although new building) once I pay my bills I struggle to make sure I have enough bread and milk in every week to make my DD school lunch box.

I have a car which is 10yrs old, and i only managed to purchase due to a large refund of nurseries fees due to me.

everything else within my flat has either come 2nd hand from family or freecycle as I can't afford to go out and buy all new.

we had upvc windows in a HA house. only they weren't fitted properly and when it was windy the curtains moved!

just to add to the bit along lines where 'everyone is given a home etc'

we did once, we had a lovely home and then became redundant and then bankrupt

had it not been for the council to help us i don't know what would have happened

we have been very lucky to get back on our feet however we will never own a place again i'm sure we not rent privately.

much better than HA though i must say and owning for that matter! we pay to live here not the upkeep of it

they also fitted lino over rotting floorboards in the bathroom.

oh and then there were lots of floorboards which were obviously sawn - so the previous tenants could hide drugs.

oh and the graffitti all over when we moved in

oh and the corrugated asbestos roof

madmissy - you pay through your rent for the upkeep

oops Riven @ the mortgage providing thinking your DH was working when he wasn't - they had nice strict checks them obviously