The stock phrase for your average garden scally in my area is "No way am I gettin' outta bed for a ****in' fiver an 'our 'n losin' me ****in' benefits.They can **** right off." People on benefits shouldn't be able to turn a job down, unless for health reasons.
This is what the Tories are trying to do with their welfare reform where anyone turning down work they are fit for would lose their benefits for a certain amount of time. That is what needs to be done.
There's nothing wrong with being on benefits if necessary. Though I should clarify, when I said "unless for health reasons" earlier, I didn't mean the current joke of a system which has countless shirking bastards dodging work with bogus incapacity claims.
Yeah, but wont that just affect people on contributions-based benefit? People on non-contributions based benefit (i.e those that haven't contributed National Insurance) might well escape it. I don't know but I think that non-contributions based jobseekers allowance needs to be scrapped. A guy I used to work with previously worked in the Maryhill Social Office and the tale he told about the reasons he left really opened my eyes. On one day, he had a guy (builder) who lost his job - he was old and found it tough to get another job. His jobseeker's allowance ran out and he was facing his house being repossessed and him and his kids being flung out on the street - the guy couldn't do anything for him, his hands were totally tied. Next woman in was well-known to everyone in the office - she got benefits that included allegedly being the carer for her mum, her aunt etc etc and the allowances for her kids - they couldn't do anything to stop any of her benefits as she had never worked and was on non-contributions based benefits - she cleared more than the guys working in the social and was a right nasty piece of work who verbally abused everyone in that office. Later that day, the guy updated his CV and decided to get the **** out of there. He had other stories of deserving types he couldn't help and utter scumbags that he couldn't do anything about - it totally sickened him and he said that the only way to sort out the welfare system in the UK was to get rid of non-contributions based stuff. I'm pretty sure that would contravene human rights laws, though. So, in short, I reckon the new Tory plans will punish people like the old guy in the story and Shannon Matthews mum and her cronies would carry on regardless.
I never said there was anything wrong with being on benefits when necessary. I claimed jobseekers after I was made redundant and while I looked for work. The problem I have is when people are turning down work (even if it is low paid) when they are fit for work in favour of staying on benefits. This is what needs to change
I'm not too sure who would be worse affected but this is exactly what needs to be changed. If the reforms affect the people not interested in working and turning work down when they are perfectly fit for it, I am in favour. If they affect people who are genuinely looking for work and just need a little help from the government (like me last year) then I am against.
