An Emergency Universal Salary paid to all...

[PieceOfMaria]

Regardless of means.

The idea currently being mooted the government.

I have an issue with this, or at least with elements of it. I don’t need the money. My DHs industry may well be impacted in the long term like everybody’s, but in the short to medium term he can WFH and is being paid in full and that’s pretty unlikely to change due to the nature of his sector. Plus we have ample savings.

Plenty of people including many retired people on comfortable pensions with relatively few outgoings won’t need the money. People who already exist entirely on benefits could argue that they need more money, but they can’t really argue that the CV crisis has left them much worse off than they already were, with the possible exception of those whose children were getting free school meals and now won’t be.

The people who will REALLY REALLY need the money are most self employed people whose work will dry up overnight. Low to middle income working people who were only just managing to keep the plates spinning anyway and now must be feeling sick with worry about their finances. Many household name firms will potentially go under because of this. People who work in small businesses and services that are dependent on footfall and face to face interaction are extremely vulnerable right now and will be losing their jobs as we speak. Airline staff are now facing redundancy or long periods of unpaid leave.

I don’t want any money Boris. Please, please means test this, so there is more to go around for those who are genuinely going to struggle within weeks or even days. I’m not one of them. There will be hundreds of thousand of people who can say hand on heart that they are not one of them either.

[aspoonfulofyourownmedicine]

This would be great if they were considering it. I agree with PP that means testing would take time, and then, what would they means test?

My 'zero hours' bar job has gone until further notice, as has my husbands. No protection or help from that, and not enough to qualify SSP.

My school job is on hold and we're on leave whilst schools are closed, but I'm not teaching staff, I cannot work from home - my job is directly with the children. I'm paid a basic salary. Due to me not working, I've lost £700 per month at the moment personally, DH has lost £200 from his 2nd job that gives us a bit extra income. DH is high risk, so will no doubt be put in isolation within the next couple of days, meaning very little pay. SSP will barely keep our heads above water.

[Rocketmam]

Nice to see people not giving a fuck about benefit claimants even in hard times

Their incoming income might not have changed, but clearly their outgoings will, considerably.

Or shall we just leave them to choose between paying bills/ eating food while the rest of us sit pretty? (and buy up all their usual cheaper products, leaving them the expensive ones)

[strawberrylipgloss]

Donate it to your local hospital, Age UK or other cause

[onetimeprepper]

Very smart move. They are effectively bailing out the banks by giving moeny to the public to pay their bills. This way makes them look like the nice guys. Bloody genius.

[NotDisclosedToday]

Nice to see people not giving a fuck about benefit claimants even in hard times hmm

Their incoming income might not have changed, but clearly their outgoings will, considerably.

How?

[NotDisclosedToday]

Everyone who buys something in a shop is a tax payer.

But their spending power remains exactly the same. Fine, give money to people who have lost their jobs. But I really fail to see why the permanent unemployed need anymore money.

[alloutoffucks]

Okay those not wanting to give this money to benefit claimants -
you do realise that will be most people who have just lost their jobs, or their business has gone best, or who are in self isolation? These are the people everyone says we need to help. Most will also be claiming benefits.

[RosesandIris]

Donate if you don’t need it to a homeless charity or food bank. Simple.

[Rocketmam]

@NotDisclosedToday well if you need it spelling out...

A disalbed person earlier on the thread said it, as have others.

Everyone at home including dc = increased utility bills as more electric will be used and heating turned on longer. Or do you want the poor dc to freeze? Have no access to online lessons?

Food bills will increase if dc are now at home. Also because of people having to self isolate they might not be able to get to the cheaper stores. Panic buying in many cases has left only the very expensive versions of what they might need.

For people already on the edge this could very easily top them over inti a chouce between paying bills and feeding their dc.

I'd rather those struggling already weren't made to face that choice. I certainly wouldn't begrudge them a grand when we will be giving wealthy working people the same.

[SouthWestmom]

The animosity to high earners on MN is so weird. Like they are all made of Teflon and never subject to redundancy ill health or job loss. Make your own choices and don't think to speak for everyone else's situation.

[alloutoffucks]

Permanently unemployed? Very few people are unemployed for more than a year.
And yes everyone has suffered financial loss. I have had to pay for more petrol and buy more expensive items in the shops or I could not afford to have eaten. I work, but this has cost me a bit of money.
The poorest will not have been able to get what they need from food banks. Lots of charities have closed as volunteers stay away, and so people have been at home paying for heating rather than going to a charity run club.

[mrsm43s]

Surely any UBI would replace UC and state pensions, not be in addition to it?

What it would do would be remove the need to search for work for a short period of UC claimants, which would mean they wouldn't risk being sanctioned for staying home and isolating.

[alloutoffucks]

@nouef Of course high earners can suffer losses. I am just surprised if you are a high earner and don't save for a rainy day. We are not high earners and we save.
But I would support an emergency universal income for all. But I do think it needs to be in a form that encourages spending, and should disappear if it has not been used at the end of the month.

[HowIrresponsible]

How much would it be?

[MrKlaw]

government doesn't care - if you need it, great. If you don't need it - you might spend it which helps elsewhere with the economy

[NotDisclosedToday]

I think something fair would be £250 for the long term unemployed
£500 for high earners £750 for mid earners and £1000 for low earners

[Bookoffacts]

OP works in welfare.
Clear indication that anyone with any heart has left that sector. In tears, at what it has become...homeless wheelchair bound people, evicting 84 year old grannies from their lifetime home etc.
Only the total ars**les are left - to be unspeakably cruel.
Obvious in the sentiment expressed here.

[NotDisclosedToday]

Everyone at home including dc = increased utility bills as more electric will be used and heating turned on longer. Or do you want the poor dc to freeze? Have no access to online lessons?

I have a full time job and dont earn much. If we get cold we put on more layers.

[SometimeSomeday]

I have been looking for a job for the last couple of months. I’ve been w stay at home mum for a while but the money we had set aside for this has completely dried up. It looks very unlikely I’ll be able to find a job now for quite a while which will put us in debt. Should I not be entitled to the government help because I haven’t been working for a while?

[tryingtoprep]

Many benefit claimants were income taxpayers for years prior to getting ill or being made redundant. They need to get essentials in advance too. Many will be in the higher risk groups and needing to self isolate.

Administering means-testing is very expensive. It's a great idea for those who don't need the money to donate it. Yes sadly there will always be greedy ones who will keep it but plenty (as seen on this thread) will use it to help the more needy. I can imagine women's refuges and other domestic abuse charities would appreciate donations. It's going to be a particularly difficult time for women in abusive relationships - especially if there are any lockdowns.

[PandaBabies]

There is no mechanism by which the government can pay everyone £1000. They don’t have our bank details. It would require to be done by way of a tax credit for those who pay income tax, and a boost to UC for those who don’t pay income tax. It should therefore be relatively easy to means test - no tax credits for those in the higher tax bracket.

The downside is that it has been shown that when a particular benefit is means tested, there is less take up even among those who need it. This is partly due to pragmatic reasons (having to take active steps to obtain a benefit stops some people) and partly due to social reasons relating to shame / stigma.

That’s why initiatives like the Scottish baby box are not means tested - those who need the benefit most are assisted by it being automatically given to everyone.

I also would prefer for universal income to be means tested, but if that renders it unworkable it should be available for all in the hope of providing for those most in need of it.

[Wallowinginfilth]

Surely this should be all tax payers. I'm employed but don't earn enough to pay tax. Or get SSP. Or work enough hours to get working tax credits. People don't seem to believe jobs like mine exist.

[HollowTalk]

I'd be very reluctant to see this go to people with high reliable earnings and not to people on benefits as well.

[Duchessofblandings]

Too much time wasted in admin on means testing, they need to act now. Hopefully the greater percentage of people who don’t need it will do the right thing and redirect it to individuals or charities who do.

[moondance19]

The government needs to cut down on military spending and look after its people.