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Unfortunately, the people who are the most ideologically wedded to the free market in all things have done a bang up job of convincing the rest of us ordinary schmucks who have to actually live in the world that creates, that most of the people being helped by the state are workshy and living it up on our tax dollars/pounds.
It's just not true. Most of the people claiming benefits are those in need and who have no other recourse or have serious barriers to getting employment. There are a few. Always will be. No matter what the system there will be a few who will try and probably succeed in gaming the system.
I find it easier to live with the idea that my taxes helped that one bloke down the road continue to live in a house I couldn't afford and eat better than I can, than that several families can't feed their children.
It also seems ridiculous to me, that when there are hundreds of thousands of people desperately wanting but unable to find work, we are going to force the much lower number of people who don't want to work into the limited number of jobs around.
Get all the people who want to work into work first. They're the majority of the unemployed. Then maybe try and figure out why the minority that are content to stay on the pittance that benefits pay are the way that they are.
Meanwhile, it's high time that companies were forced to pay a fair wage. the rush to create a 'flexible work force' has not solved the unemployment problem. It's just created a bloody great slew of underemployed and working poor.
I keep hearing politicians saying work should always pay more than benefits. But instead of tackling stagnating wages, zero hour contracts and the rising cost of living, they just keep cutting benefits.
It is obscene that two people in full time work have to claim benefits just to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table. It shouldn't require both parents to work two jobs just to survive.
Working benefits (tax credits for families, housing benefit for the low paid) are just a way of the tax payer funding workers for private business. I would far rather my tax money went straight to those who can't work, whilst those who can got paid real wages.
If a business cannot afford to pay its workforce a fair wage then they should be considered insolvent. Just as they would were they unable to pay their ground rent or their product costs.
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