Is a single mothers benifits enough

black-saturn

You still havn't answered my question KrissKross - are you in receipt of benefits? You don't have to give the details. Just a simple yes or no will do.

krisskross

black-saturn wrote: »

What I mean is the benefit trap doesn't give you much incentive to work.

Do you receive any benefits KrissKross?

Depends what you call benefits. Both my husband and me get State Retirement Pension. He gets just over £500 a month, I get £212 a month. We also get the Winter Fuel Allowance. However I do consider the pension element to be entitlements rather than benefits, as we meet the qualifications. We did clock up almost 90 years work between us as well as bring up 4 children who are all working. We still pay income tax, approx £140 a month between us, so our net benefit is approx £570 a month plus our Winter Fuel money.

edit to say I have never claimed sickness or unemployment pay. My husband had to give up work when he was 60 as he had his 3rd heart attack and needed bypass surgery. He claimed Incapacity Benefit until he was 65.

black-saturn

Kriss Kross - You didnt think about saving for a private pension when you were racking up the 90 years of work so as not to be such a burden on the tax payer?

weymuffred

dmg24 wrote: »

No, they would learn to budget with the money that they had.

Tell me how?

dmg24

Jet wrote: »

Easy to say, but if your outgoings are more than your incomings, then short of not eating or having the electric cut off, there's not much budgeting can do.

So are you saying that everyone that is better off on benefits should give up work?

Some of us have no choice but to get into debt, but I'd rather do that than live off benefits without genuinely needing to.

Bogof_Babe

Going back to the original question, why are the children of single mums not being supported by their fathers? All very well to say "he walked out", but I am sure in most cases he didn't disappear off the face of the Earth.

Interesting to hear today that the Tory's are proposing re-jigging things so that families living together will be better off, not worse off as now, than so-called separated parents. I wonder (if they get elected and put this into practice) whether there will suddenly be a reduction in single parent statistics.

There is no reason why Krisskross should not take up her state pension (if in fact this is what her £212 per month is - it sounds more like the figure for an employment pension at that rate). She paid into the system all the time she worked, and the Government makes no suggestion that retired pensioners are a burden on the system, unlike arguably avoidable single parents.

dmg24

weymuffred wrote: »

Tell me how?

People have already tried to show you how.

For others, look at the Debtfree Wanabee board. Lots of really useful advice and support on there as to how to live within your means (or as close to them as possible.

black-saturn

Of course there will be a dramatic reduction in single parents but there will also be a dramatic increase in unhappy children who are stuck in loveless families because they are better off.

It will be interesting to see if unhappy married couples get as much flack as single parents do now. They will be staying together because they are better off on benefits and therefore be a burden to that poor tax payer I keep hearing about wheras they could split up and be worse off but better off emotionally. Works both ways doesn't it?

weymuffred

dmg24 wrote: »

So are you saying that everyone that is better off on benefits should give up work?

Some of us have no choice but to get into debt, but I'd rather do that than live off benefits without genuinely needing to.

So how far should I, and many others in my position, go into debt before we loose everything?

weymuffred

dmg24 wrote: »

People have already tried to show you how.

For others, look at the Debtfree Wanabee board. Lots of really useful advice and support on there as to how to live within your means (or as close to them as possible.

Yes and I have taken all the advice offered, but its funny that our debts and problems became a problem whilst my wife was working.