Anyone watch panorama?

[babyjan]

Don't cap my benefits?

What's your thoughts on this?

I couldn't help feel sorry for the families being forced to move out of London, away from school, family and friends

 

[CourtneyLane]

I gave it a miss in case it was the usual benefit bashing.

It's a shame though that the benefit cap means people have to leave their families and friends. I know some people think London should be a place you live if you have money but if you have lived there all your life and have little money due to life circumstances, it seems extra cruel that you would also have family support removed by shuttling you up north. It's not fair.

 

[emyandpotato]

I didn't watch it so won't comment on that BUT although it's unfair to force people to move, I don't understand why you can only apply for housing within an area you live/work/have family in. For example there are so many people in London just desperate for a council house when there are areas in the North where there are so many going spare! Yes perhaps there should be priority for people with connections in the area but desperate people shouldn't be turned down when houses are in abundance.

 

[sophxx]

I don't feel sorry for them. If there's no council house and they don't want to work why should they live in a big house in London all payed for and keep having kids. When we work 7 days a week 7-11. I'm glad there moving people

 

[Natasha2605]

I don't feel sorry for them. If there's no council house and they don't want to work why should they live in a big house in London all payed for and keep having kids. When we work 7 days a week 7-11. I'm glad there moving people

I absolutely agree.

The one guy with seven kids who earnt 150 a week in wages but recieved 800 a week in benefits. That is so wrong!

 

[katieandfras]

.

 

[emyandpotato]

Please don't say/assume people who don't work don't want to work. It's so rarely true, and it's hurtful to a lot of people who have to live in the shadow of the horrible stereotype. The economy is awful now, and it's so hard for so many people.

And please don't reply that such and such a person chooses not to work. Yeah, some people do, but the majority of those out of work in the UK right now are desperate for a job.

 

[CourtneyLane]

I don't feel sorry for them. If there's no council house and they don't want to work why should they live in a big house in London all payed for and keep having kids. When we work 7 days a week 7-11. I'm glad there moving people

I absolutely agree.

The one guy with seven kids who earnt 150 a week in wages but recieved 800 a week in benefits. That is so wrong!

What a lot of empathy you have! What about single mothers who have ended up alone through no fault of their own? And who can't find work because of childcare expenses? Don't you think it's unfair that they then have to leave all their family and friends behind too and have no support whatsoever?

Remember the people who choose not to work are few and far between in real life. They are chosen for programmes like this to elicit responses exactly like yours.

 

[Natasha2605]

I don't feel sorry for them. If there's no council house and they don't want to work why should they live in a big house in London all payed for and keep having kids. When we work 7 days a week 7-11. I'm glad there moving people

I absolutely agree.

The one guy with seven kids who earnt 150 a week in wages but recieved 800 a week in benefits. That is so wrong!

What a lot of empathy you have! What about single mothers who have ended up alone through no fault of their own? And who can't find work because of childcare expenses? Don't you think it's unfair that they then have to leave all their family and friends behind too and have no support whatsoever?

Remember the people who choose not to work are few and far between in real life. They are chosen for programmes like this to elicit responses exactly like yours.

No, lots of reading up leads to responses like mine. Please don't patronise me, just because my view is different to yours doesn't mean I'm uninformed and this one program feeds my thoughts.

What do they expect. Its not the council's fault.

The council have NO homes for them.
They cannot afford to live where they are.
Therefore they shouldn't expect to continue to live as they are.

Yes, some cases are unfortunate. But this wouldn't be happening if it wasn't necessary.

Did you watch the program? Some of them were downright demanding. They ought to be grateful for all they have been given.

 

[babyjan]

I gave it a miss in case it was the usual benefit bashing.

It's a shame though that the benefit cap means people have to leave their families and friends. I know some people think London should be a place you live if you have money but if you have lived there all your life and have little money due to life circumstances, it seems extra cruel that you would also have family support removed by shuttling you up north. It's not fair.

exactly!

the single mother who was moved to Luton was sad, she was in b&b and removed from the only people she knew in London and was in tears, her 14 year old daughter refused to move with her because she didn't want to start up her life again with school, friends etc so now her and her mother rarely see each other as shes remained in London with friends I think

 

[sophxx]

I experience this 1st hand everyday I own shops all over in rough estates or boarding on rough estates the amount of people of benefits cos they think they deserve them or they can't be bothered to get up or have better things to do with there time, they might be a small amount of people who want to work.

My problem is not with benefits it's with people who think they should be entitled to live in big houses in London or other areas on all payed for by me in my taxes while they have lots of children.

 

[Pearls18]

I was very conflicted watching it, I don't buy into all the benefits bashing arguments because I know that is a ploy, divide and rule! However, my sympathy was some what limited in parts of the programming.

On the one hand it does seem crazy the extortionate amount of money that will have to be paid out in London for housing benefit, I can see why this needs to be addressed. I don't think a national cap is fair though because those in London will disproportionately suffer compared to those in other areas. It doesn't seem fair people will be made to move from an area they have grown up in and have a support network, it is not their fault where they grew up and hard not to compare it to social cleansing intentional or not....but if a house was being offered to be put over my head when I was in need I wouldn't turn it down, we have to move regularly due to the nature of my husband's job, I don't have a support network, needs must.

However, the single mum of 3 irritated me, she seemed to think she deserved a medal for volunteering and going to college, if she is able to volunteer she should be out looking for work as she obviously has the time and childcare (although I'm not sure if the childcare was tied in with the voluntary work) but she had a bad attitude,I didn't empathise for her at all from what was portrayed on the programme. She had no inclination to provide for her own children, it was about what benefited her personally best.

This wasn't a benefits bashing programme, it was the opposite. It was unduly biased against the conservatives and the policy, if you noticed they talk about how bad the policy is throughout the programme but then at the end almost all of the people featured actually got what they wanted anyway and were moved to Brent (not all I grant you).

So I am on the fence from this programme, but it is a difficult balance to help those that genuinely need the help but not make it a lifestyle choice, that said in a country with limited housing and unemployment problems we have to have a good safety net there, and I would personally prefer to live in a country that doesn't leave its children to starve and be homeless, and if that means some take advantage of it, so be it.

 

[Pearls18]

Sorry for my Swiss response ha, but it annoys me the way the debate is made so black and white by both sides. Either the government are rich toffs with only vested interests in mind that don't give a damn about the poor and just want to cut, cut, cut so they can have their second homes and burgers paid for, or it's scrounging, lazy, uneducated pregnant 13 year olds only wanting a flat and their cannabis paid for. Life isn't like that. We have poverty in this country, a lack of jobs, people fall into bad times and as a developed society we all chip in to keep ourselves afloat, it does us all good...who wants to live in the Democratic Republic of Congo? But resources aren't finite, the government have to cut somewhere and have to draw a line at some point. There will always be winners and losers, this is a very old argument and will continue until the apocalypse itself. I think looking beyond just the British media to create our opinions might help us a long way. And I remove myself from the soap box!

 

[CourtneyLane]

I don't feel sorry for them. If there's no council house and they don't want to work why should they live in a big house in London all payed for and keep having kids. When we work 7 days a week 7-11. I'm glad there moving people

I absolutely agree.

The one guy with seven kids who earnt 150 a week in wages but recieved 800 a week in benefits. That is so wrong!

What a lot of empathy you have! What about single mothers who have ended up alone through no fault of their own? And who can't find work because of childcare expenses? Don't you think it's unfair that they then have to leave all their family and friends behind too and have no support whatsoever?

Remember the people who choose not to work are few and far between in real life. They are chosen for programmes like this to elicit responses exactly like yours.

No, lots of reading up leads to responses like mine. Please don't patronise me, just because my view is different to yours doesn't mean I'm uninformed and this one program feeds my thoughts.

What do they expect. Its not the council's fault.

The council have NO homes for them.
They cannot afford to live where they are.
Therefore they shouldn't expect to continue to live as they are.

Yes, some cases are unfortunate. But this wouldn't be happening if it wasn't necessary.

Did you watch the program? Some of them were downright demanding. They ought to be grateful for all they have been given.

Reading up on what? More Tory spin? There is so much of it out there at the moment designed to get people hating other people and it's working.

I've already stated I didn't watch this programme as I was already aware it was going to be yet another biased "documentary" aimed to incite more hatred. And like I said above, these demanding people are only representative of those exact people. They were chosen for the programme because they would fit perfectly the role of demanding benefit scum, who ought to be grateful for every crumb, just like the producers will have planned.

I do wonder if the opinions presented on here (and in other places) would still be the same if the people expressing them were in this situation. If you'd just found out you were losing your home due to the benefits cap and the social housing, that was meant to be a roof over your head during whatever rough time had put you there, was taken away from you, would you be happy? If you had to move your grandchildren away from their grandparents and leave behind your entire life, would you be happy? If you were already on the breadline and had nothing apart from family, would you be happy to leave them? No one can honestly say that they would be happy to leave. Receiving benefits doesn't mean you can't express those feelings. Yes they are lucky that we live in a country where we do get help but that doesn't mean they can't be sad about being shipped out.

What the government should really be doing is finding a way to make housing affordable for all and pay a living wage and make childcare affordable. People should be angry about that not happening and directing their anger towards Mr Scameron rather than raging at the poorest people in our country who having more and more taken away from them.

 

[emyandpotato]

MarineWag; I've not seen it so not trying to argue with you but if the single mum was volunteering and at college perhaps it's because she felt the experience gained volunteering, along with the qualifications she was working towards, would stand her in better stead when she finished college and she could perhaps find a better job. For example I work in a job for which the pay only covers my travel, but I know it will pretty much guarantee my place on a PGCE course and give me a better chance of finding a teaching job.

Also, a lot of people volunteer because they can't find work and think it will be great on their CV as opposed to doing nothing. But then I haven't watched it so I'm probably talking out of my arse

 

[Natasha2605]

I don't feel sorry for them. If there's no council house and they don't want to work why should they live in a big house in London all payed for and keep having kids. When we work 7 days a week 7-11. I'm glad there moving people

I absolutely agree.

The one guy with seven kids who earnt 150 a week in wages but recieved 800 a week in benefits. That is so wrong!

What a lot of empathy you have! What about single mothers who have ended up alone through no fault of their own? And who can't find work because of childcare expenses? Don't you think it's unfair that they then have to leave all their family and friends behind too and have no support whatsoever?

Remember the people who choose not to work are few and far between in real life. They are chosen for programmes like this to elicit responses exactly like yours.

No, lots of reading up leads to responses like mine. Please don't patronise me, just because my view is different to yours doesn't mean I'm uninformed and this one program feeds my thoughts.

What do they expect. Its not the council's fault.

The council have NO homes for them.
They cannot afford to live where they are.
Therefore they shouldn't expect to continue to live as they are.

Yes, some cases are unfortunate. But this wouldn't be happening if it wasn't necessary.

Did you watch the program? Some of them were downright demanding. They ought to be grateful for all they have been given.

Reading up on what? More Tory spin? There is so much of it out there at the moment designed to get people hating other people and it's working.

I've already stated I didn't watch this programme as I was already aware it was going to be yet another biased "documentary" aimed to incite more hatred. And like I said above, these demanding people are only representative of those exact people. They were chosen for the programme because they would fit perfectly the role of demanding benefit scum, who ought to be grateful for every crumb, just like the producers will have planned.

I do wonder if the opinions presented on here (and in other places) would still be the same if the people expressing them were in this situation. If you'd just found out you were losing your home due to the benefits cap and the social housing, that was meant to be a roof over your head during whatever rough time had put you there, was taken away from you, would you be happy? If you had to move your grandchildren away from their grandparents and leave behind your entire life, would you be happy? If you were already on the breadline and had nothing apart from family, would you be happy to leave them? No one can honestly say that they would be happy to leave. Receiving benefits doesn't mean you can't express those feelings. Yes they are lucky that we live in a country where we do get help but that doesn't mean they can't be sad about being shipped out.

What the government should really be doing is finding a way to make housing affordable for all and pay a living wage and make childcare affordable. People should be angry about that not happening and directing their anger towards Mr Scameron rather than raging at the poorest people in our country who having more and more taken away from them.

Are you just trying to be rude? Cause if so it is working. We all have opinions , we certainly don't have to agree. No need to be so hostile just because other's don't share your view. It doesn't make us ignorant, or blindly believing what is told to us.

To the other bolded point 1) They didn't 'just' find out, they'd all been pre warned this was happening over a period of time and 2) Many of them were receiving discretionary housing payment to help with the costs of the rent which they KNEW would soon be ending, isn't that maybe an indicator that you should be prepared for moving or else finding alternative ways to help yourself?

If I was in that situation would I be happy? Of course not, but I'd also suck it up and be thankful I had the help I did ( and will continue to have). There is not an ever lasting fund of money to help those that can't/won't work, thankfully, and surely nobody can seriously say that spending all that extra money just so people can stay where they are comfortable is acceptable.

I absolutely agree with the first half of your last point. There should be more sustainable, affordable housing and cost effective childcare, but whilst there is not enough to meet demand people cannot expect things to continue as they are. The government already helps out massively and it's about time things were reigned back in.

It's not about taking more and more aware from the poorest necessarily. But the system being the way that it is leaves it open to abuse. £800 a week in benefits? Please, that is an absolute joke and needs to be capped back. Doesn't it cap benefits at £500 a week? That is just about more than me and OH earn a week and we survive comfortably. Could we survive in London? Absolutely not. You live within your means.

For me, MarineWag summed it up. Needs must. Would it be convenient? No. But to provide for my children would I? Absolutely. And I'd be thankful everyday our system exists. Yes it would suck, but that's life. You do what you have to to get through.

 

[Pearls18]

MarineWag; I've not seen it so not trying to argue with you but if the single mum was volunteering and at college perhaps it's because she felt the experience gained volunteering, along with the qualifications she was working towards, would stand her in better stead when she finished college and she could perhaps find a better job. For example I work in a job for which the pay only covers my travel, but I know it will pretty much guarantee my place on a PGCE course and give me a better chance of finding a teaching job.

Also, a lot of people volunteer because they can't find work and think it will be great on their CV as opposed to doing nothing. But then I haven't watched it so I'm probably talking out of my arse

I know what you're saying hun, I'm a massive advocate for volunteering and have done a lot myself to get where I am, but if you do catch the programme she was going through her options about what she would get working, she chose not to work (it's hard to explain the situation without seeing the programme). I work and study, with a husband who goes away for work a lot, it is do-able if you want to, I don't buy in her situation that work wasn't doable she volunteered in childcare, there's plenty of ways to get jobs in childcare (or at least try) volunteering is a good gap stop, but shouldn't completely stop job searching in my opinion. if you want to work for the career you want, great, but you have to do just that work for it, it's not up to the government to subsidise it all. She contemplated work, suggesting she could in her circumstance, but chose not to, and I don't agree with that, I always think we should be accountable to ourselves first (or try to be at least). But I am only talking about her, not a certain section of society.

A couple of years ago I worked 37 hours a week and was contemplating a career change, (teaching) I spent my Friday evenings volunteering in a youth club for a year, my husband wasn't around then he was in training, sometimes, to get where you want you have to not do the convenient thing, she was after convenience but not at her own expense.

 

[lilyd]

I agree with MarineWAG and I don't think the program was bashing those on benefits. I actually felt a great deal of sympathy for some of them. We never know what circumstances we may end up in and when we may need help.

However, there is part of me that gets a bit cross is when somebody that has very little income can afford to have 7 children. I do think it is a little unjust that they can elect to have such a large family, knowing that somebody else will pay the bill. I know plenty of people where both parents work that have had to limit themselves to having one or two children because they simply could not afford to provide childcare/food/housing for more.

 

[sue_88]

I don't feel sorry for them. If there's no council house and they don't want to work why should they live in a big house in London all payed for and keep having kids. When we work 7 days a week 7-11. I'm glad there moving people

I absolutely agree.

The one guy with seven kids who earnt 150 a week in wages but recieved 800 a week in benefits. That is so wrong!

What a lot of empathy you have! What about single mothers who have ended up alone through no fault of their own? And who can't find work because of childcare expenses? Don't you think it's unfair that they then have to leave all their family and friends behind too and have no support whatsoever?

Remember the people who choose not to work are few and far between in real life. They are chosen for programmes like this to elicit responses exactly like yours.

No, lots of reading up leads to responses like mine. Please don't patronise me, just because my view is different to yours doesn't mean I'm uninformed and this one program feeds my thoughts.

What do they expect. Its not the council's fault.

The council have NO homes for them.
They cannot afford to live where they are.
Therefore they shouldn't expect to continue to live as they are.

Yes, some cases are unfortunate. But this wouldn't be happening if it wasn't necessary.

Did you watch the program? Some of them were downright demanding. They ought to be grateful for all they have been given.

Absolutely agree with you Natasha.

I watched it and was horrified at the amount of money they get for sitting on their bloody backside.

I am a single mother, and was told I could get £13k in benefits per year if I didn't work.....CUSHTY!

Actually, NO! That's disgusting, no wonder our country went to shit if they were willing to pay people like that.

I resigned from my 9 to 5 job (not because I couldn't afford to work, my salary was <£50k...I just didn't want to work 5 days a week and be away from my LO) within ONE HOUR of my decision to resign, I had a new job working 2 days a week cooking in a cafe.

It is NOT that hard to find work....if you're willing to of course. You may need to move, you may need to accept that for a while your going to be cleaning toilets but SO WHAT! Get off your arse and do it.

So let's not lump single mums into this, we don't need pity, some of us can't help our situation, I sure as hell did not expect it but I don't expect the government to fund my mobile bill, internet and holidays!!

 

[lau86]

And how are you finding your lifestyle working 2 days a week in a cafe?! It doesn't sound the same as these people at all