Benefit cuts to hit more than 330,000 children

Missyhenry

p00hsticks wrote: »

So taking that thought to the logical extreme, shall we say that unless a person has a watertight signed employment contract that guarantees them employment throughout their working life, even if they fall ill, if they should not be allowed a contact phone in case they become sick or lose their jobs ?

Perhaps we'd be better to introduce escape clauses so people can get out of these contracts if they become unemployed?

Confuseddot

Child benefit hasn't been touched and although its not a lot it should be enough to at least feed the children if budgeted properly. A quick look at how to feed your family(2 adults and 2 small kids) for 20 a week should give people some ideas. It's all about back to basics and cooking from scratch and not wasting anything.

rogerblack

Confuseddot wrote: »

Child benefit hasn't been touched and although its not a lot it should be enough to at least feed the children if budgeted properly. A quick look at how to feed your family(2 adults and 2 small kids) for 20 a week should give people some ideas. It's all about back to basics and cooking from scratch and not wasting anything.

Child benefit is one of the benefits that goes towards the benefit cap.
Every pound of child benefit reduces your entitlement to housing benefit by one pound, as do child tax credits.
In more expensive areas, someone newly out of work after being continually unemployed may accrue enough debt on their housing - even subsidising with half of their 'disposable' income to be evicted in several months. Even if they are in an inexpensive property for the area.

pmlindyloo

rogerblack wrote: »

Child benefit is one of the benefits that goes towards the benefit cap.
Every pound of child benefit reduces your entitlement to housing benefit by one pound, as do child tax credits.
In more expensive areas, someone newly out of work after being continually unemployed may accrue enough debt on their housing - even subsidising with half of their 'disposable' income to be evicted in several months. Even if they are in an inexpensive property for the area.

It might help people to know that if you have been continuously employed for 12 months and you lose you job through no fault of your own the benefit cap will not affect you for 39 weeks.

http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/housing_benefit_and_local_housing_allowance/changes_to_housing_benefit/benefit_cap

SnooksNJ

nannytone wrote: »

people really do say some silly things/
for many people, a PAYG mobile would be more expensive than a contract phone!
a friend pays £12 a month on a contract that gives unlimited call minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited internet, far cheaper than any PAYG.

don't you realise that it is the 'convenience' of not having a bill that makes PAYG the more expensive option, in much the same way as using a pre pay utility meter is the most expensive way to pay

With my PAYG plan I pay £3 for internet and with that use What's App for messages.

SnooksNJ

Missyhenry wrote: »

Perhaps we'd be better to introduce escape clauses so people can get out of these contracts if they become unemployed?

Would the person be required to give the phone back? If they have to will there be a penalty because the phone is now used or will the phone company be required to absorb the loss??

rogerblack

pmlindyloo wrote: »

It might help people to know that if you have been continuously employed for 12 months and you lose you job through no fault of your own the benefit cap will not affect you for 39 weeks.

http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/housing_benefit_and_local_housing_allowance/changes_to_housing_benefit/benefit_cap

See later post, this is in error
I have not found the legal provision that says this.
The relevant regulations seem to be:


http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/376/part/7#text%3D%22benefit%20cap%22

(2) A grace period is a period of 9 consecutive months that begins on the most recent of the following days in respect of which the condition in paragraph (3) is met—

(3) The condition is that, in each of the 12 months immediately preceding that day, the claimant's earned income or, if the claimant was a member of a couple, the couple's combined earned income was equal to or exceeded the amount mentioned in paragraph (1)(a).

The amount is 1517 for a single person. A 56 hour week at the NMW.

This would seem to say here is no grace period at all for people earning even considerably more than the NMW full-time.

(note this was 2013, the figure used for NMW is 6.31)

sxcizme3010

I think everybody agrees that a small minority of people do claim benefits continuously and make no attempt to work - however there is a difference between non working households claiming benefits and working households claiming! Not only that but I know business owners who cook their books so they qualify for TC and CTB aswell as pupil premiums etc! I am a mum of two claiming WTC whilst looking for a higher paid job (of which Im capable of getting) - so then I wont be claiming tax credits as I wont want or need to. Dont tar everybody with the same brush. The fact is everybodys circumstances is different and as a society we should be supportive and understanding not judging people. The old argument I managed back in the day - yes when the cost of living wasnt anywhere near as high, families could survive on 1 wage so childcare wasnt needed etc. Its no comparison

Missyhenry

SnooksNJ wrote: »

Would the person be required to give the phone back? If they have to will there be a penalty because the phone is now used or will the phone company be required to absorb the loss??

Not everybody actually pays for a phone on a contract. If they do, that's a form of credit and a rather different situation.

Other EU counties allow customers to break mobile phone contracts when unemployed so it's nothing new.

Alice312

Are all these benefit changes 10000% going to even happen.
I think the tax credit limit of 2 children will go ahead in 2017 and the £20000 benefit cap will too, but the tax credit thresholds coming down are going to have a knock on effect. So many people are going to be in terrible circumstances.
The £7.20 living wage is ridiculous, i work and claim tax credits (I use it to pay towards my childcare bill) and am not old enough to get this 'living wage' so I'll be losing nearly about 2.8k a year.