There must be another round of austerity incoming....

[mmj_uk]

...with misleading articles like this:
Official: Britain spends £1,000 MORE per person on welfare than the European average

Then you actually look at the graph and see that besides the basket case economies (Greece, Portugal, Spain) the only countries we actually spend more than are Eastern European countries.

So not only is our welfare already the lowest per person of the major European economies (with a much higher cost of living I might add) but there are plans ahead for even more aggressive cuts?

Is the plan to make us such an uncaring society that no immigrants will ever want to come here? will food banks be able to keep up with demand?

 

[StriderX]

Welcome to the Neo-liberal paradise of pure hate.

For a taste of what is to come, visit Aberdeen.

 

[Deleted member 66701]

Pensions, sickness pay and healthcare make up 75% of the welfare bill

How many people equate this with "benefits".

Not many Daily Mail reader I guess.

 

[logicfry]

It's just the Tory way of doing things. If you can't pay for *whatever* then go without and get a better job. They don't want the state to pay for anything at all, unless it's a tax break for their backdoor business dealings.

 

[alx]

Welcome to the Neo-liberal paradise of pure hate.

For a taste of what is to come, visit Aberdeen.

Eh? Aberdeen is a neo-liberal paradise?

 

[PMKeates]

How many people equate this with "benefits".

Not many Daily Mail reader I guess.

Aren't those things part of the core definition of benefits?

 

[Angilion]

Aren't those things part of the core definition of benefits?

The general impression (deliberately promoted by politicians and the media) is that "benefits" means "my taxes being given to illegal immigrants and workshy lowlives who have a dozen kids and live in a mansion with 84-inch TVs and PS4s in every room and still complain".

 

[jsmoke]

Remember this is the DM. There are apparently two accepted ways to measure welfare contribution per country/per claimant, this is one way. I can't find the article I am looking for but will look again. The article I read was consistent with your graph for one method however measuring by the other showed that Britain was actually placed near the top of the list. The DM will generally print what is relevant to their disposition.

 

[dowie]

after next election there is going to have to be... we're still running at a deficit, the debt is still piling up - while the economy has improved, employment has improved etc... we've still got a long way to go - we need a lot more cuts before we can start running at a surplus

 

[Deleted member 66701]

Aren't those things part of the core definition of benefits?

That was my point.............

Many a Daily Mail reader would classify benefits as something else though.

 

[Deleted member 66701]

after next election there is going to have to be... we're still running at a deficit, the debt is still piling up - while the economy has improved, employment has improved etc... we've still got a long way to go - we need a lot more cuts before we can start running at a surplus

We (well not me, I'm retired ) all need a pay rise so tax revenues can catch up with spending.

 

[Danthus]

We (well not me, I'm retired ) all need a pay rise so tax revenues can catch up with spending.

What happens to inflation?

 

[Mickie]

after next election there is going to have to be... we're still running at a deficit, the debt is still piling up - while the economy has improved, employment has improved etc... we've still got a long way to go - we need a lot more cuts before we can start running at a surplus

Their are other ways to claw back money to pay for peoples pensions and the sick, working families that don't earn enough because of the cost of living and min wage..

It will be great to see the torries cut more and put more people out of work or into zero hours trying to then claim working tax credit..

While they ignore millionairs avoiding tax, corporations not paying tax, the bankers giving them selves 80 billion for a bonus..

I want the torries to pull the country down just to see the look on your face..

 

[jl10000]

while the economy has improved, employment has improved etc...

Dunno, £29 billion on tax credits makes me think the jobs are crap and the wages stink.

 

[Jono8]

While they ignore millionairs avoiding tax, corporations not paying tax,

You mean the millionaires and big corporations that provide hundreds of thousands, if not millions of jobs to people around the country?

What people forget, is that the government has to make this country attractive to large corporations and rich investors.

You can't just say: "bleurgh tax the corporations and millionaires" as that could well make things a whole lot worse for everyone.

Is it perfect or is it fair? No, but then life isn't. Our government, thankfully know that it would be a ludicrous plan to make the UK an unattractive place to do business in.

 

[ote1]

What source has the Daily Mail used in writing that headline?

'This includes hospital stays, GP visits and free prescriptions for the elderly, the Office for National Statistics.' - that wonderful sentence doesn't count.

 

[StriderX]

Eh? Aberdeen is a neo-liberal paradise?

Because Neo-liberal is basically conservative, do nothing councils where we come from.

 

[Mickie]

You mean the millionaires and big corporations that provide hundreds of thousands, if not millions of jobs to people around the country?

What people forget, is that the government has to make this country attractive to large corporations and rich investors.

You can't just say: "bleurgh tax the corporations and millionaires" as that could well make things a whole lot worse for everyone.

Is it perfect or is it fair? No, but then life isn't. Our government, thankfully know that it would be a ludicrous plan to make the UK an unattractive place to do business in.

Their needs to be a balance and at the moment I feel they side more with the rich/corp than they do the poor..

I hope they also know if they cut too hard their will also be riots..

 

[Danthus]

Dunno, £29 billion on tax credits makes me think the jobs are crap and the wages stink.

And how much does it cost to run the systems that administers Tax Credits?

The system is ridiculous, people go to work, pay tax, fill in a form to claim it back, claim is processed, claimant receives money back.

Just don't tax them to begin within, it is such an obvious thing to do.

 

[jl10000]

You mean the millionaires and big corporations that provide hundreds of thousands, if not millions of jobs to people around the country?

What people forget, is that the government has to make this country attractive to large corporations and rich investors.

You can't just say: "bleurgh tax the corporations and millionaires" as that could well make things a whole lot worse for everyone.

Is it perfect or is it fair? No, but then life isn't. Our government, thankfully know that it would be a ludicrous plan to make the UK an unattractive place to do business in.

Small and medium business also provide huge numbers of jobs, the inland revenue come down on them like a tonne of bricks if the books don't add up. They squash sole traders like insects over a few hundred quid. So when you have large corporations who simply don't pay billions, we effectively have a two tier tax system. If you can afford a crack team of lawyers and deloitte to cook the books, some other chump in the UK will just have to make up the short fall. HMRC are £35 billion short.

These large corporations such as Tesco or B&Q destroy opportunity for small business and replace it with minimum wage jobs. Call their bluff, I'll bet you will find plenty of business minded people willing to get into the market. scaremongering rubbish is all it is.

Just remember that YOU have to contribute to the massive tax credit bill to subsidise corporations who don't pay real wages or tax, laughing all the way to the bank..