Austerity or Class War?

[DanaC]

This bit makes me want to retch, given the impact of benefits cuts right now:

the academies programme, which has exceeded its budget by £1bn over the last two years

Meanwhile, here's what the Defence Secretary has to say about further budget cuts to his department:

The defence secretary, Philip Hammond, has warned that he will resist further cuts to the armed forces in George Osborne's forthcoming spending review.

He told the Daily Telegraph that other Tory cabinet ministers believed the greatest burden of any cuts should fall on the welfare budget.

There was, he said, a "body of opinion within cabinet who believes that we have to look at the welfare budget again" and "we should be seeing welfare spending falling" as a result of rising employment levels. He said a 0.5% saving from the benefit bill would be enough to protect the armed forces.

Fuck me. They want more cuts. The biggest overhaul of the welfare system in decades and swingeing cuts just starting to bite, changes to housing benefit about to take effect, and changes to tax credits and a bunch of other ancillary stuff all kicking off with the new tax year (April), and still they want more. Warnings coming from all the charities, the oversight committees, the various committes looking at the possible impact region to region, despite the explosion of food banks and soup kitchens, which in some areas have become a regular resource for the working poor, never mind those unlucky enough to to find themselves out of work in this climate. Despite report after report showing sky rocketing levels of child hunger, with a majority of teachers in state schools reporting that more children are arriving hungry and without having eaten breakfast.

The support systems are creaking. Those of them that have survived the funding cuts or the drop in donations are reducing what they attempt to do.

And still it's not enough. Still they want more of the burden to fall on those with nothing, or on those working ridiculous hours for minimum wage that still isn't enough, or who work through agencies and don't have regular work (the majority of the much touted rise in employment), or have cancer or went suddenly blind, or care 24/7 for their severely disabled adult children, or were made redundant and at 57 nobody is hiring in their field, and competition for jobs generally is high.

I'm going to bed now. I'm tired of feeling angry.