Northern Ireland Finances

BatCat

I also think water and prescription charges are a good idea. There's a lot of waste (I've seen water leaks carry on for days without anyone acting on them) and abuse of the system.
The problem with the prescription charge was the heavy cost of the administration. Too many exceptions to it made it costly. I've had friends who were pregnant who have got prescription for a wide range of things from moisturizing cream to paracetamol. They don't appear to make the connection between getting things for free and damaging the NHS.

qwert_yuiop

BatCat wrote: »

Yesterday, 80 odd refuges landed in Belfast to newly furnished homes & immediate benefits.

Actually it was 57 refugees.
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-36154540
These people have nothing. Nothing.

If your recent employee has been working for 14 years, then he should have some savings. He should not necessarily expect to arrive and immediately claim .

You're not entitled to dole if you have more than £3000, which seems fair.

Milko

qwert_yuiop wrote: »

That bit about the residency test is not correct.

Simply relaying what he was told ... CAB have told him that providing his birth certificate should suffice without having to sit a test

BatCat wrote: »

Actually it was 57 refugees.
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-36154540
These people have nothing. Nothing.

If your recent employee has been working for 14 years, then he should have some savings. He should not necessarily expect to arrive and immediately claim benefits.

I stand corrected ... mainly thanks to my new orthopedic shoes but they actually have "at least" £10k each from the government according to your link, which would take me some time to earn (especially after I've paid my self assessment tax). Oh lets not forget their new home ... something I pay over £1000/month to own.
I personally worked for my former employer for 17 years before the recession closed the business & left me unemployed ... I didn't have any savings, was told I'd have to wait at least 6 weeks for any benefits & due to my wife working, would probably only be allowed basic dole, no rate relief, housing benefit etc...
I feel for the refugees, that goes without question. The government however, is fundamentally flawed in oh so many ways... especially to their own

tommie

Well you all should think yourselves very very fortunate, spare a thought for our retiring MLA`s - those poor neglected beings thrown on the scrapheap of life.

but thankfully some kind soul has given them all a `Resettlement Grant` no less..

to the tune of £500k!!
yes five hundred thousand pounds!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-36165269

nice work if you can get it..

qwert_yuiop

....between 15 of them. Still a fair bit all the same.

The argument of course is that if life as a politician is not adequately rewarded, no one who's likely to be any good will want to go into it, and we'll be ruled by a bunch of talentless half wits. Oh - who might be open to corruption since they're so poor.

JoseChungsDoomsday

Alliance are a middle class party, this has always been a driving force in their 'economic plan'. But the underlining problem we have with all local party's is that the UK government pays the bills and helps them out when they mess up, so their economic plans are always a bit up in the clouds because they don't have to take responsibility.

The thought of the local clowns getting control of tax powers should keep us all awake at night.

It's always a tricky subject to discuss refugees on a forum but I'll throw my hat in anyway

The UK is one of the richest nations in the world, there's plenty of tax revenues the government could go after if it wanted, but doesn't. The social problems we have is due to the jaded ideology's of numerous governments (including Labour in that). That is the real reason we have people living in the streets. However we should still take refugees. It's the right thing to do and frankly, NI wouldn't be where it is today without other countries taking in our youth for months at a time and giving us money.

qwert_yuiop

Alliance are the local equivalent of the liberal democrats across the sheugh. Still a unionist party, they don't even organise in catholic areas.

If stormont had tax raising powers, we'd get proper left and right wing parties like everywhere else. Following some of the welfare reform etc, it's interesting to see that people before profit, formerly known as the socialist workers' party, are making headway among working class voters, supposed socialists ( with holiday homes in Donegal) taking the blame for implementing the cuts. Could get interesting.