The more I hear about objection to the proposed benefits caps of £26,000 the angrier I get. Average (median, I believe) UK annual income in 2007 was approximately £21,000: assuming a rate of inflation of 4% PA that rises to £25,500 in 2012. I don’t understand how people can complain at earning £500 extra a year for doing 300 odd days less work.
As a second year university student I’m well aware of how to be financially sensible, and I’m also well aware I ignore that knowledge every time I visit my local Asda, but I muddle through fine. My family are in little-to-no position to help me out, financially, meaning my approximate ‘earnings’ PA are £6,500 from Student Finance (mixture of grants and loans). Out of that I pay for rent, television, transport to lectures, food, drink, a social life, bills, broadband etc. etc.
I just finished a BBC article (found here) analysing how the benefits cap will affect a certain family. This family has seven children (a, personally, ridiculous number) and buys 24 cans of beer and 200+ cigarettes a week, as well as rolling tobacco. They pay for Sky Movies so they can be entertained whilst sitting around the house all day. The man of the household has been out of work for ten years.
I don’t pretend to have similar outgoing payments to a family of nine (again, sheer idiocy), but I don’t think they’re too dissimilar in relation to our separate situations. The fact the (unelected) Lords (by which I largely mean bishops) attempted to throw this cap out is ludicrous.
As a right-wing student I vehemently abhor (there, I said it) a welfare state, and some overactive baby machine bitching how he can’t be a lazy arsehole anymore somewhat gets my goat.
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