The usual disparagers of organised religion might be honest enough to recognise the sterling work done by local congregations to organise and keep running these local food banks.
Yep, one good thing religion does, however it doesn't make up for all heartache, hate and damage it promotes.
After all the congregation of St Michael and All Saints regularly mob up after communion on a Sunday, fill up Christian Aid envelopes and take boxes of food to drop in centres. Then there's the constant fund raising year round, all under the guise of gentile English traditional values, the bastards!
They can still do all that good work without being brainwashed into believing in an invisible friend, poor sods!
@Greenie just out of interest what would you propose the Labour Party or any other proposed government do to stop food banks being needed?.
Why should Greenie have to tell you when Labour has already spelt it out. They have said they will stop benefit sanctions and address the low pay culture that is a major reason why foodbanks are needed. It won't be instant, but it is working towards social justice rather than unfairness. Sorry, but like him or not, that is what Corbyn stands for!!!!!!
tbh i asked @Greenie a question he seemed happy enough to answer it... so no real need to get involved and praise your man of the people corbyn.
why would you stop benefit sanctions surely job seekers allowance should be for someone seeking employment?.
as per usual this has been turned into a politics debate by the same posters who get quite excited when others do it.
Setting aside the question of sanctioning people on JSA, what's the justification for sanctioning people who've been assessed as unfit to work?
i am not going to go through every single benefit that is given out, as the poster before put a blanket stop benefit sanctions, as i am sure you are aware as much as there are deserving claimants there is also a lot of people that do cheat the system, a benefit that i would like looked into is the appalling way our ex military are treated.
Food banks came up on another topic, but I can't find it now.
Without doubt the need for the use of food banks for a country like us is a disgrace, but people going without a meal is not something new the past 10 years, but has clearly worsened.
The last 25+ years has brought us to this point not just austerity although that undoubtedly has had a negative impact over the last 5 years as has universal credit (not so much the idea but the implementation).
There’s a lot to sort out to eradicate food banks, benefit system, wages (which will need more than an up tick in minimum wage which will kill a lot of businesses), the taxation system, financial education, mental health and 101 other things. I’m yet to see a coherent answer to it from our politicians.
I’m running a Foodbank match on 8th December at Erith. The Bexley Foodbank distribution centre in 200m up the way in Avenue Road, so was logic to do our bit. It’s a disgrace this happens in 2018, but I’d rather help people and families at ground level that genuinely need it.
I’m running a Foodbank match on 8th December at Erith. The Bexley Foodbank distribution centre in 200m up the way in Avenue Road, so was logic to do our bit. It’s a disgrace this happens in 2018, but I’d rather help people and families at ground level that genuinely need it.
I believe Charlton are doing one over a couple of hone games soon as well.
we used to have a harvest where we brought in canned foods etc, where did that go to food banks?.
i believe it was the labour party in power 1997 - 2010.
not saying things haven't got worse but i don't think its as easy as to just blame the tories the whole way the country is run is a bit of a joke through justice systems, wars we didn't need to get involved in, benefit cheats, housing cheats, health tourists.
I’m running a Foodbank match on 8th December at Erith. The Bexley Foodbank distribution centre in 200m up the way in Avenue Road, so was logic to do our bit. It’s a disgrace this happens in 2018, but I’d rather help people and families at ground level that genuinely need it.
I believe Charlton are doing one over a couple of hone games soon as well.
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
im not shifting the blame to anyone - but the notion that food banks and poverty in this country are a new thing that have just been caused by the tories i believe to be bollocks. lets remember the tories only got in power in 2010!.
We (my primary school) would collect tins etc... and give them to a local old people's home. I recall being chosen to go and sing to them too! Nowadays schools still do it, but the produce tends to go to food banks.
We (my primary school) would collect tins etc... and give them to a local old people's home. I recall being chosen to go and sing to them too! Nowadays schools still do it, but the produce tends to go to food banks.
Those were the days
Your mum giving you the oldest tins from the back of the cupboard to take to school......hoping you wouldn’t get picked to deliver said boxes to houses that invariably stunk of cats, piss and biscuits in equal measure.
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
im not shifting the blame to anyone - but the notion that food banks and poverty in this country are a new thing that have just been caused by the tories i believe to be bollocks. lets remember the tories only got in power in 2010!.
Then you go on to shift the blame. Look at the present shit state our country is in, it is down to the Tories and the polices of the Tory government, no one else. If as been said before we have had 25 plus years of poverty, Btw we haven't, (there will always be some poorer people) but the present levels of poverty is unprecedented in the modern world, its at Dickensian levels in some areas....the bottom line is that the Tories have had over 8 years to make it better, so what do they do, they make it worse for most people in this country, that cannot be argued, its not been fixed, its been broken and broken, by them almost to the point that it cannot be repaired. As @Bournemouth Addick said above, Tory voters have had plenty of time to understand what they are voting for. I cant change that, if only they would say, 'yep I voted for them, Ive bought into the tory vision of "I'm alright Jack', and I dont really give a toss about people less well off then me, but hey I give a couple of quid to Children In Need, so my conscious is clear' then at least I would have a bit of respect for them, however the constant defence of tory policies and attacking Labour is ridiculous, and I have nothing but contempt for anyones political view who voted for this Conservative government. Make no mistake the Tories caused this mess, no non else...no one.
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
im not shifting the blame to anyone - but the notion that food banks and poverty in this country are a new thing that have just been caused by the tories i believe to be bollocks. lets remember the tories only got in power in 2010!.
Then you go on to shift the blame. Look at the present shit state our country is in, it is down to the Tories and the polices of the Tory government, no one else. If as been said before we have had 25 plus years of poverty, Btw we haven't, (there will always be some poorer people) but the present levels of poverty is unprecedented in the modern world, its at Dickensian levels in some areas....the bottom line is that the Tories have had over 8 years to make it better, so what do they do, they make it worse for most people in this country, that cannot be argued, its not been fixed, its been broken and broken, by them almost to the point that it cannot be repaired. As @Bournemouth Addick said above, Tory voters have had plenty of time to understand what they are voting for. I cant change that, if only they would say, 'yep I voted for them, Ive bought into the tory vision of "I'm alright Jack', and I dont really give a toss about people less well off then me, but hey I give a couple of quid to Children In Need, so my conscious is clear' then at least I would have a bit of respect for them, however the constant defence of tory policies and attacking Labour is ridiculous, and I have nothing but contempt for anyones political view who voted for this Conservative government. Make no mistake the Tories caused this mess, no non else...no one.
Could you name some of the areas you mention that are at "Dickensian" levels of poverty.
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
im not shifting the blame to anyone - but the notion that food banks and poverty in this country are a new thing that have just been caused by the tories i believe to be bollocks. lets remember the tories only got in power in 2010!.
Then you go on to shift the blame. Look at the present shit state our country is in, it is down to the Tories and the polices of the Tory government, no one else. If as been said before we have had 25 plus years of poverty, Btw we haven't, (there will always be some poorer people) but the present levels of poverty is unprecedented in the modern world, its at Dickensian levels in some areas....the bottom line is that the Tories have had over 8 years to make it better, so what do they do, they make it worse for most people in this country, that cannot be argued, its not been fixed, its been broken and broken, by them almost to the point that it cannot be repaired. As @Bournemouth Addick said above, Tory voters have had plenty of time to understand what they are voting for. I cant change that, if only they would say, 'yep I voted for them, Ive bought into the tory vision of "I'm alright Jack', and I dont really give a toss about people less well off then me, but hey I give a couple of quid to Children In Need, so my conscious is clear' then at least I would have a bit of respect for them, however the constant defence of tory policies and attacking Labour is ridiculous, and I have nothing but contempt for anyones political view who voted for this Conservative government. Make no mistake the Tories caused this mess, no non else...no one.
im stating that pre 2010 - there was poverty if that is not true then please correct me im 28 and the government in charge have never done enough.
as another poster stated tories take too much away - labour give too much away BOTH PARTIES are unsustainable, in an ideal world you would take bits of both parties and mix them together and could probably come up with a pretty well run countrry - sadly in my life or yours that wont happen.
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
im not shifting the blame to anyone - but the notion that food banks and poverty in this country are a new thing that have just been caused by the tories i believe to be bollocks. lets remember the tories only got in power in 2010!.
Then you go on to shift the blame. Look at the present shit state our country is in, it is down to the Tories and the polices of the Tory government, no one else. If as been said before we have had 25 plus years of poverty, Btw we haven't, (there will always be some poorer people) but the present levels of poverty is unprecedented in the modern world, its at Dickensian levels in some areas....the bottom line is that the Tories have had over 8 years to make it better, so what do they do, they make it worse for most people in this country, that cannot be argued, its not been fixed, its been broken and broken, by them almost to the point that it cannot be repaired. As @Bournemouth Addick said above, Tory voters have had plenty of time to understand what they are voting for. I cant change that, if only they would say, 'yep I voted for them, Ive bought into the tory vision of "I'm alright Jack', and I dont really give a toss about people less well off then me, but hey I give a couple of quid to Children In Need, so my conscious is clear' then at least I would have a bit of respect for them, however the constant defence of tory policies and attacking Labour is ridiculous, and I have nothing but contempt for anyones political view who voted for this Conservative government. Make no mistake the Tories caused this mess, no non else...no one.
Does poverty not exist in other developed countries? Have you spent any time travelling in the US for example?
According to recent OECD figures, the UK has similar levels of absolute poverty than its comparable developed world counterparts (defined in terms of earning less than 60% of median income) but does have relatively higher levels of food insecurity (again well below US levels however). This apparent anomaly can be interpreted in various ways partly depending on your starting political viewpoint I suspect.
I appreciate that there is a deep visceral hatred for the Tories dating back for many to well before the Cameron/May era, but describing the situation as 'unprecedented in the modern world' is a bit extreme to say the least.
I have been lucky enough to travel in both my work and personally, sadly the work related travel has taken me to places that I would not have chosen to visit as a tourist.
I have seen levels of poverty in the USA, Spain, France, Italy & Russia that I have never witnessed in the UK and I have traveled the UK extensively.
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
im not shifting the blame to anyone - but the notion that food banks and poverty in this country are a new thing that have just been caused by the tories i believe to be bollocks. lets remember the tories only got in power in 2010!.
Then you go on to shift the blame. Look at the present shit state our country is in, it is down to the Tories and the polices of the Tory government, no one else. If as been said before we have had 25 plus years of poverty, Btw we haven't, (there will always be some poorer people) but the present levels of poverty is unprecedented in the modern world, its at Dickensian levels in some areas....the bottom line is that the Tories have had over 8 years to make it better, so what do they do, they make it worse for most people in this country, that cannot be argued, its not been fixed, its been broken and broken, by them almost to the point that it cannot be repaired. As @Bournemouth Addick said above, Tory voters have had plenty of time to understand what they are voting for. I cant change that, if only they would say, 'yep I voted for them, Ive bought into the tory vision of "I'm alright Jack', and I dont really give a toss about people less well off then me, but hey I give a couple of quid to Children In Need, so my conscious is clear' then at least I would have a bit of respect for them, however the constant defence of tory policies and attacking Labour is ridiculous, and I have nothing but contempt for anyones political view who voted for this Conservative government. Make no mistake the Tories caused this mess, no non else...no one.
Could you name some of the areas you mention that are at "Dickensian" levels of poverty.
I really cant believes that you would ask that, Ostriching at its finest. After all I've written you pick this part to highlight. That sums of the tory voter. Heres a microcosm of our society, get yer head round this little stat...this was compiled in 2017....in 2016, 4,751 people are estimated to be sleeping rough on any one night, since 2010 rough sleeping estimates show an increase of 169%.....well done the Tories, but hey you carry on putting your cross down next to them....!
Modern day poverty in 2018 can be directly traced back to:
- Labour spending too much - Brown selling off the gold - PFI - Labour bailing out the banks - The war in Iraq - Blair's open door immigration - the huge increase of fake benefit claimaints and bogus asylum seekers during the Blair years - the policy of giving a council house to every teenage parent
Isn't homelessness a local council issue rather than a central government one, and if so doesn't most homelessness exists in cities where councils are generally Labour-run? (I understand the argument that central government 'austerity' has had an impact on councils).
Your stat on rough sleeping is correct but broader homelessness (including B&Bs and other temporary accommodation) peaked under the Labour govt in 2003 and has since fallen by approx. 50%.
Modern day poverty in 2018 can be directly traced back to:
- Labour spending too much - Brown selling off the gold - PFI - Labour bailing out the banks - The war in Iraq - Blair's open door immigration - the huge increase of fake benefit claimaints and bogus asylum seekers during the Blair years - the policy of giving a council house to every teenage parent
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
im not shifting the blame to anyone - but the notion that food banks and poverty in this country are a new thing that have just been caused by the tories i believe to be bollocks. lets remember the tories only got in power in 2010!.
Then you go on to shift the blame. Look at the present shit state our country is in, it is down to the Tories and the polices of the Tory government, no one else. If as been said before we have had 25 plus years of poverty, Btw we haven't, (there will always be some poorer people) but the present levels of poverty is unprecedented in the modern world, its at Dickensian levels in some areas....the bottom line is that the Tories have had over 8 years to make it better, so what do they do, they make it worse for most people in this country, that cannot be argued, its not been fixed, its been broken and broken, by them almost to the point that it cannot be repaired. As @Bournemouth Addick said above, Tory voters have had plenty of time to understand what they are voting for. I cant change that, if only they would say, 'yep I voted for them, Ive bought into the tory vision of "I'm alright Jack', and I dont really give a toss about people less well off then me, but hey I give a couple of quid to Children In Need, so my conscious is clear' then at least I would have a bit of respect for them, however the constant defence of tory policies and attacking Labour is ridiculous, and I have nothing but contempt for anyones political view who voted for this Conservative government. Make no mistake the Tories caused this mess, no non else...no one.
Could you name some of the areas you mention that are at "Dickensian" levels of poverty.
I really cant believes that you would ask that, Ostriching at its finest. After all I've written you pick this part to highlight. That sums of the tory voter. Heres a microcosm of our society, get yer head round this little stat...this was compiled in 2017....in 2016, 4,751 people are estimated to be sleeping rough on any one night, since 2010 rough sleeping estimates show an increase of 169%.....well done the Tories, but hey you carry on putting your cross down next to them....!
But you cannot just throw a number of 4,751 out there can you. If that is the basis of your argument then the number needs to be broken down to find out the real reasons they are on the streets.
If you take into account the population in the UK as of today stands at 66,731,870 the number of homeless people is a very small percentage.
"Dickensian" levels of poverty are no electricity, no gas, no running water, no heat and no sewage, I am struggling to think of an area in the UK that meets the above.
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
im not shifting the blame to anyone - but the notion that food banks and poverty in this country are a new thing that have just been caused by the tories i believe to be bollocks. lets remember the tories only got in power in 2010!.
Then you go on to shift the blame. Look at the present shit state our country is in, it is down to the Tories and the polices of the Tory government, no one else. If as been said before we have had 25 plus years of poverty, Btw we haven't, (there will always be some poorer people) but the present levels of poverty is unprecedented in the modern world, its at Dickensian levels in some areas....the bottom line is that the Tories have had over 8 years to make it better, so what do they do, they make it worse for most people in this country, that cannot be argued, its not been fixed, its been broken and broken, by them almost to the point that it cannot be repaired. As @Bournemouth Addick said above, Tory voters have had plenty of time to understand what they are voting for. I cant change that, if only they would say, 'yep I voted for them, Ive bought into the tory vision of "I'm alright Jack', and I dont really give a toss about people less well off then me, but hey I give a couple of quid to Children In Need, so my conscious is clear' then at least I would have a bit of respect for them, however the constant defence of tory policies and attacking Labour is ridiculous, and I have nothing but contempt for anyones political view who voted for this Conservative government. Make no mistake the Tories caused this mess, no non else...no one.
I agree with a lot of that. My only caveat would be that this has been on the horizon for longer than the latest batch of corrupt, self-serving shites have been in government. A few factors include how over populated the UK now is, totally disproportionate to the infrastructure that exists or even is planned. The sheer volume of glass ceiling, minimum wage jobs a lot of which people can't live on the money they pull in and are offered no support in terms of healthcare, sick pay, even holiday pay (This I believe the conservatives are culpable for however that particular revolution had also begun under Blair). The lack of housing doesn't help but that leads back to how over-populated we are.
The real crime is the perpetrators of the inevitable financial collapse have not been to held to any sort of account nor have they born the pain of the austerity.
And people wonder why, someone whose life and situation is at rock bottom, who has seen very wealthy people in commerce, politics, whatever, tell them to vote remain. They are then going to do the exact opposite as a 'fuck you' to them.
The mental gymnastics some posters on this thread are going through to shift the blame to Labour or to create some false equivalency between the amount of kids turning up for school hungry this morning, because that's what we are talking about, and 10, 15, 20 years ago is astonishing.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
im not shifting the blame to anyone - but the notion that food banks and poverty in this country are a new thing that have just been caused by the tories i believe to be bollocks. lets remember the tories only got in power in 2010!.
Then you go on to shift the blame. Look at the present shit state our country is in, it is down to the Tories and the polices of the Tory government, no one else. If as been said before we have had 25 plus years of poverty, Btw we haven't, (there will always be some poorer people) but the present levels of poverty is unprecedented in the modern world, its at Dickensian levels in some areas....the bottom line is that the Tories have had over 8 years to make it better, so what do they do, they make it worse for most people in this country, that cannot be argued, its not been fixed, its been broken and broken, by them almost to the point that it cannot be repaired. As @Bournemouth Addick said above, Tory voters have had plenty of time to understand what they are voting for. I cant change that, if only they would say, 'yep I voted for them, Ive bought into the tory vision of "I'm alright Jack', and I dont really give a toss about people less well off then me, but hey I give a couple of quid to Children In Need, so my conscious is clear' then at least I would have a bit of respect for them, however the constant defence of tory policies and attacking Labour is ridiculous, and I have nothing but contempt for anyones political view who voted for this Conservative government. Make no mistake the Tories caused this mess, no non else...no one.
Could you name some of the areas you mention that are at "Dickensian" levels of poverty.
I really cant believes that you would ask that, Ostriching at its finest. After all I've written you pick this part to highlight. That sums of the tory voter. Heres a microcosm of our society, get yer head round this little stat...this was compiled in 2017....in 2016, 4,751 people are estimated to be sleeping rough on any one night, since 2010 rough sleeping estimates show an increase of 169%.....well done the Tories, but hey you carry on putting your cross down next to them....!
But you cannot just throw a number of 4,751 out there can you. If that is the basis of your argument then the number needs to be broken down to find out the real reasons they are on the streets.
If you take into account the population in the UK as of today stands at 66,731,870 the number of homeless people is a very small percentage.
"Dickensian" levels of poverty are no electricity, no gas, no running water, no heat and no sewage, I am struggling to think of an area in the UK that meets the above.
Good grief! The last time I looked none of this is available when sleeping rough, but if you want to believe this government have done well you carry on voting for them and be part of the problem.
By way of an example, the lowest-earning 5% have seen post-tax income increase by approx. 50% over the period versus approx. 12% for the highest-earning 5%.
However there has been a very significant unequal distribution of increases in wealth as low global interest rates (a central bank not govt-led policy) drove up the prices of virtually every asset, and unsurprisingly this benefits the rich more than the poor. This same phenomenon has been evidenced across the whole developed world - blaming Tory austerity solely is too simplistic even though it makes for a straightforward narrative.
Some factors to consider here:
- the very wealthy generally avoid taking their earnings as income due to the high tax levied on incomes over 150k and will look to more efficient ways of being renumerated outside the income system. Hence why incomes for the top 5% do not grow as quickly as the poorest.
- 12% increase on £150,000 is £18,000. 50% on £16,000 is £8,000. So the rich are getting richer pound for pound.
- the lowest incomes are rising but are not as quickly as the cost of living when netted off with the various cuts and removal of tax credits, benefits, public services and other support the poorest rely on to make ends meet. Add in the rise on inappropriate zero hours contracts and the gig economy where the lowest paid are losing out to the tune of thousands of pounds in terms of sick pay, holiday pay, pensions, parental leave etc.
Bear in mind some of the biggest losers of austerity are councils and local authorities who have had to make huge cuts across the board, the impact of which disproportionately fall on the poor.
Using my mk one eyeball as opposed to stats, i'm confident rough sleeping has risen considerably in at least the last five years. Anyone that works on the edges of the city (Aldgate, Farringdon, Shoreditch areas) must agree with this.
Modern day poverty in 2018 can be directly traced back to:
- Labour spending too much - Brown selling off the gold - PFI - Labour bailing out the banks - The war in Iraq - Blair's open door immigration - the huge increase of fake benefit claimaints and bogus asylum seekers during the Blair years - the policy of giving a council house to every teenage parent
Prove me wrong.
Now I'm confused A.
Did they deliver you a Daily Mail today instead of a Guardian?
Comments
Without doubt the need for the use of food banks for a country like us is a disgrace, but people going without a meal is not something new the past 10 years, but has clearly worsened.
The last 25+ years has brought us to this point not just austerity although that undoubtedly has had a negative impact over the last 5 years as has universal credit (not so much the idea but the implementation).
There’s a lot to sort out to eradicate food banks, benefit system, wages (which will need more than an up tick in minimum wage which will kill a lot of businesses), the taxation system, financial education, mental health and 101 other things. I’m yet to see a coherent answer to it from our politicians.
we used to have a harvest where we brought in canned foods etc, where did that go to food banks?.
i believe it was the labour party in power 1997 - 2010.
not saying things haven't got worse but i don't think its as easy as to just blame the tories the whole way the country is run is a bit of a joke through justice systems, wars we didn't need to get involved in, benefit cheats, housing cheats, health tourists.
The cuts to public services are going to have long reaching consequences that are going to be very hard to eradicate.
None of this should be a surprise to anyone.
The Tories have stood on a platform of austerity and a narrative of demonising benefits claimants since 2010. If you were happy to vote for it in 2010, then vote for more in 2015 and then a little more last year people could at least have the honesty to accept it or acknowledge the impact their vote has had on the poorest in our society.
See also rising homelessness...
Always a chance to clean out the larder of the packet soups and tins of spaghetti and other stuff that hadn't been eaten the previous six months.
Do schools still do this?
Your mum giving you the oldest tins from the back of the cupboard to take to school......hoping you wouldn’t get picked to deliver said boxes to houses that invariably stunk of cats, piss and biscuits in equal measure.
Look at the present shit state our country is in, it is down to the Tories and the polices of the Tory government, no one else.
If as been said before we have had 25 plus years of poverty, Btw we haven't, (there will always be some poorer people) but the present levels of poverty is unprecedented in the modern world, its at Dickensian levels in some areas....the bottom line is that the Tories have had over 8 years to make it better, so what do they do, they make it worse for most people in this country, that cannot be argued, its not been fixed, its been broken and broken, by them almost to the point that it cannot be repaired. As @Bournemouth Addick said above, Tory voters have had plenty of time to understand what they are voting for. I cant change that, if only they would say, 'yep I voted for them, Ive bought into the tory vision of "I'm alright Jack', and I dont really give a toss about people less well off then me, but hey I give a couple of quid to Children In Need, so my conscious is clear' then at least I would have a bit of respect for them, however the constant defence of tory policies and attacking Labour is ridiculous, and I have nothing but contempt for anyones political view who voted for this Conservative government.
Make no mistake the Tories caused this mess, no non else...no one.
as another poster stated tories take too much away - labour give too much away BOTH PARTIES are unsustainable, in an ideal world you would take bits of both parties and mix them together and could probably come up with a pretty well run countrry - sadly in my life or yours that wont happen.
According to recent OECD figures, the UK has similar levels of absolute poverty than its comparable developed world counterparts (defined in terms of earning less than 60% of median income) but does have relatively higher levels of food insecurity (again well below US levels however). This apparent anomaly can be interpreted in various ways partly depending on your starting political viewpoint I suspect.
I appreciate that there is a deep visceral hatred for the Tories dating back for many to well before the Cameron/May era, but describing the situation as 'unprecedented in the modern world' is a bit extreme to say the least.
I have seen levels of poverty in the USA, Spain, France, Italy & Russia that I have never witnessed in the UK and I have traveled the UK extensively.
Heres a microcosm of our society, get yer head round this little stat...this was compiled in 2017....in 2016, 4,751 people are estimated to be sleeping rough on any one night, since 2010 rough sleeping estimates show an increase of 169%.....well done the Tories, but hey you carry on putting your cross down next to them....!
- Labour spending too much
- Brown selling off the gold
- PFI
- Labour bailing out the banks
- The war in Iraq
- Blair's open door immigration
- the huge increase of fake benefit claimaints and bogus asylum seekers during the Blair years
- the policy of giving a council house to every teenage parent
Prove me wrong.
Your stat on rough sleeping is correct but broader homelessness (including B&Bs and other temporary accommodation) peaked under the Labour govt in 2003 and has since fallen by approx. 50%.
If you take into account the population in the UK as of today stands at 66,731,870 the number of homeless people is a very small percentage.
"Dickensian" levels of poverty are no electricity, no gas, no running water, no heat and no sewage, I am struggling to think of an area in the UK that meets the above.
The real crime is the perpetrators of the inevitable financial collapse have not been to held to any sort of account nor have they born the pain of the austerity.
And people wonder why, someone whose life and situation is at rock bottom, who has seen very wealthy people in commerce, politics, whatever, tell them to vote remain. They are then going to do the exact opposite as a 'fuck you' to them.
The last time I looked none of this is available when sleeping rough, but if you want to believe this government have done well you carry on voting for them and be part of the problem.
- the very wealthy generally avoid taking their earnings as income due to the high tax levied on incomes over 150k and will look to more efficient ways of being renumerated outside the income system. Hence why incomes for the top 5% do not grow as quickly as the poorest.
- 12% increase on £150,000 is £18,000. 50% on £16,000 is £8,000. So the rich are getting richer pound for pound.
- the lowest incomes are rising but are not as quickly as the cost of living when netted off with the various cuts and removal of tax credits, benefits, public services and other support the poorest rely on to make ends meet. Add in the rise on inappropriate zero hours contracts and the gig economy where the lowest paid are losing out to the tune of thousands of pounds in terms of sick pay, holiday pay, pensions, parental leave etc.
Bear in mind some of the biggest losers of austerity are councils and local authorities who have had to make huge cuts across the board, the impact of which disproportionately fall on the poor.
Did they deliver you a Daily Mail today instead of a Guardian?