MSE News: Government considers tougher benefit sanctions

RuthMarianna

kingfisherblue wrote: »

I belong to a food co-op run by the local social housing group. I live in a mortgaged property, and you don't have to rent from them to join.

Every Wednesday I order and pay for my fruit, veg, salad or eggs fort he following week. £3 a bag for fruit, salad and veg, or £1 for six free range eggs - all locally sourced where possible.

A typical fruit bag contains
4 oranges/tangerines/clemantines
4 apples
4 pears
4 bananas
6 kiwi fruit
1 melon

A typical veg bag contains:
1 bag of potatoes
1 cauliflower
1 large head of broccoli
4 large carrots
2 onions
1 leek

This would cost a lot more in the supermarket. You don't have any choice in the contents of the bag, but that doesn't worry me. if anyone has a similar scheme in their area, it's well worth joining - the food is lovely and fresh, as well as inexpensive.

That is amazing. I wish I had something lik that in my area. We did have a fruit and veg scheme for a while but the amount you got kept going down that in the end the supermarket was cheaper. But I do miss the surprise factor of what will be in the bag each week.

But the point is are they likely to accept food stamps and in any case the money you saved could not be spent on other budget items like clothes or energy.

Morlock

BigAunty wrote: »

But the nation has to get used to the fact that our economic growth isn't coping with the ever expanding costs of the welfare state.

I don't like the Tories one bit but we are in an economic hole which is the worst for 80 years - you can call it an attack on the poor and vulnerable or you can accept that govt policies have led to a high cost/low wage economy with an ever increasing pool of benefit claimants and changes have to be made.

The government should concentrate on benefiting the population, not big businesses. For example, Tesco, where a lot of employees are earning around minimum wage and being subsidised by benefits, Tesco made £10 million per day in 2011, £3.8 billion pounds that year. Yet taxpayers subsidise their workers, and other working people cannot afford to shop there.

Tax these exorbitant profit mongers, not the disabled who have little chance of finding work, even if they are willing, by sanctioning their benefits for futile reasons.

sniggings

BigAunty wrote: »

As far as I know, the state pension is one of the biggest costs to the public purse. Many of the benefit changes have ring-fenced and protected pensioners - such as the forthcoming changes in the council tax discounts, the so called 'bedroom tax' for social housing. They must have strong voting power to be protected from the big benefit cuts.

I do feel the ESA system is too harsh but a revamp is overdue (I am critical of IB because of how it infantilised some of my family members who were allowed to languish on it long-term as alcoholics when the focus should have been on treatment and a return to employment rather than just parking them on the sidelines).

I mean, in my city, 1 in 5 used to be on IB (that's excluding DLA by the way) - hopeless way to deal with 20 % of the working age population who may not be the most attractive to employers but doesn't mean they can't work in some capacity.

The welfare budget is around £200 billion, the split between pensions and benefits is about 50/50, as you say pensions are ring fenced, maybe the fact that pensioners make up the Tories biggest voting group is the reason why.

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sniggings

kingfisherblue wrote: »

I belong to a food co-op run by the local social housing group. I live in a mortgaged property, and you don't have to rent from them to join.

Every Wednesday I order and pay for my fruit, veg, salad or eggs fort he following week. £3 a bag for fruit, salad and veg, or £1 for six free range eggs - all locally sourced where possible.

A typical fruit bag contains
4 oranges/tangerines/clemantines
4 apples
4 pears
4 bananas
6 kiwi fruit
1 melon

A typical veg bag contains:
1 bag of potatoes
1 cauliflower
1 large head of broccoli
4 large carrots
2 onions
1 leek

This would cost a lot more in the supermarket. You don't have any choice in the contents of the bag, but that doesn't worry me. if anyone has a similar scheme in their area, it's well worth joining - the food is lovely and fresh, as well as inexpensive.

Is that £3 for the fruit AND veg or £3 for just one, sounds very good if for both and just OK if for one.

The eggs sound about the same as a shop, maybe not free range but when on a low income that's at the bottom of my must haves.

sniggings

Morlock wrote: »

The government should concentrate on benefiting the population, not big businesses. For example, Tesco, where a lot of employees are earning around minimum wage and being subsidised by benefits, Tesco made £10 million per day in 2011, £3.8 billion pounds that year. Yet taxpayers subsidise their workers, and other working people cannot afford to shop there.

Tax these exorbitant profit mongers, not the disabled who have little chance of finding work, even if they are willing, by sanctioning their benefits for futile reasons.

I totally agree, Morrisons too have over 40% of their staff on government funded apprenticeships , how crazy is that.

Morlock

sniggings wrote: »

I totally agree, Morrisons too have over 40% of their staff on government funded apprenticeships , how crazy is that.

The list goes on and on, even basic utility companies providing necessities such as food, water, electricity and gas are raking in billions per annum whilst their employees are subsidised by government funded benefits, yet the country is broke. Yeah, right.

BigAunty

kingfisherblue wrote: »

....

Every Wednesday I order and pay for my fruit, veg, salad or eggs fort he following week. £3 a bag for fruit, salad and veg, or £1 for six free range eggs - all locally sourced where possible.

That's really fab - real value for money.

I am going to put my name for allotments but it's going to take years to get a plot, and hopefully will turn over my new garden to raised beds next year. Will be looking how to maximise the produce - vertical plant holders, window boxes and so forth.

I popped by a local charity that runs a community garden but they seemed so disorganised and the raised beds were in such an immature state that even though I could have been given some beds, I think the time commitment would be far too much for me to get it up to scratch, plus I think the garden is v. vulnerable to vandalism, sadly. I will look out for other community ventures, perhaps a bit more established/secure.

sniggings

Morlock wrote: »

The list goes on and on, even basic utility companies providing necessities such as food, water, electricity and gas are raking in billions per annum whilst their employees are subsidised by government funded benefits, yet the country is broke. Yeah, right.

the public believe it though, I watched the Daily Politics today and there is talk the Houses of commons needs a refurb at a cost of 3 billion :eek:

One minute we are told the country is skint, and then talk of spending 3 billion and 12 billion on the Olympics! I must admit it, I was starting to believe the spin but now realise that Labour have been proved right in saying the cutting have been too fast and too deep, and the Tories can not be trusted, not just with the NHS but in power again.

I will be ringing my local Labour party and offering my services, even if it's just posting leaflets through doors.

Morlock

sniggings wrote: »

the public believe it though, I watched the Daily Politics today and there is talk the Houses of commons needs a refurb at a cost of 3 billion :eek:

That's chicken feed, British Gas made nearly £3 billion in 2011 whilst a lot of people struggled to pay their gas bill or froze to death.