Jobless couple given �500,000 home

[AB Asks]

A detached eight bedroom house with its own garden and driveway has been given to a jobless couple with 12 children. It is a house that many dream of being able to afford but this family have not had to pay a penny. They were given the house after their former home was burnt down in a fire. Neither of the parents has a job � claiming they would earn less if they worked. The couple receive an astonishing �44,000 a year in benefits. What do you think? Are these people lazy scroungers? Or are they working an unfair system to their own benefit � something we should all think of doing?

[rugeleyboy]

its disgraceful!!!

but at least if a working couple (or single) buys a eight bedroom house they will be financialy better off when they downsize in thier twilight years!!............. these scroungers wont!!

[ck1]

It is very frustrating, but what else could the council do? It would seem unfair if they had been given even a 4 or 5 bedroom house which they couldn't realistically squeeze 12 kids into. The main problem is the fact that they are exposed to a system that will give them more money for not working, had this not been the case they would have probably stopped at 2/3 kidsand be paying for their own place somewhere, I doubt that even an 8 bedroom house is particularly comfortable but they must be feeling pretty smug. So are they lazy scroungers or just very clever, pulling off an 8 bedroom house without a job must take some quantity of grey matter?

[Reverandfunk]

Heaven help us.

[Goodsoulette]

Making 44,000 spread to 14 people cant be easy can it? I agree with CK1 thats probably still a very cramped house. That is what social housing is for Im afraid. When all there kids are over 5 one of them will be expected to work. Social housing is there for a reason and right to buy is the reason why lots of you are on the property ladder.

We dont know the actually facts surrounding this family do we?

[theonlyone]

There was a family with a lot of children and they got no benefits as the parents both worked to support them , this was in the paper a few weeks back , as they did a comparison with another family who were on the benefit system . The benefit family were better off , also had the designer gear , huge plasma tv ,smoked , went to bingo and the pub , so not hard up at all . Have they not thought of birth control ? but more children and it's more money .

[LeMarchand]

At the risk of sounding like a Nazi: enforced sterilisation.

Unfortunately this wouldn't work in the real world as there would be far too many corrupt people willing to exploit the system. It's odd that all sorts of checks are run on prospective adopters, but any woman who wants to spread her legs is allowed to birth.

Or are they working an unfair system to their own benefit � something we should all think of doing?

Way to go, AB! That's why the system and country is in such a godawful state!

[Reverandfunk]

Soulette, never mind the facts, who in their right minds would have 12 kids full stop???

[Goodsoulette]

I totally agree with you reverand. I think 2 is the limit and if I knew how much hard work that extra one is I would have stopped at one.

[jake-the-peg]

�44,000 a year wouldn't persuade me to have 12 children I can tell you!

[Le Chat]

Goodsoulette - Are you kidding? �44k, even with 14 people - NO MORTGAGE - That in itself takes care of �600 per month (at least!)- No council tax - (On �500k house ) that takes care of another �150-�170 per month !
They are laughing their socks off!!
On top of that they will get free prescriptions and all sorts of free stuff that I wouldn't know about because I've always had to graft.

[theonlyone]

Also if one of them is disabled they can get a mobility car or the allowance for it , and attendance allowance , prescriptions for 14 people is an awful lot of money , under 18's get free dental treatment , the list is endless . They know how to work the system , if we all did it who would pay for it ???

[spanner7853]

If my house burnt down would they give me a free house 12 kids or not? Really riles me this kind of thing. I have nothing against some people on benefits but us full time workers that cant even get tax credits coz we apparently earn to much ( i dont think so) are get shafted left right and centre. I never have money left at the end of the month and my husband and me both work full time and always have done. I live in a mid terraced house with 3 bedrooms which is quite small and I can't even afford to move. Together my husbands and my salary is �36,000 and we get �40 tax credit per month for my sons child care which comes to �130 per month. Makes me want to give up work and claim everything under the sun.

Goodsoulette �44,000 may not be easy to spread between 14 people but they choose to have that many kids. they must get about �500 per month in child benefit!!!

[ruby27]

AB imitates Daily Mail again
They have not been given, like some sort of present the home, they live in it not own it. It either belongs to the housing department or the housing benefit pays for the house and it belongs to a landlord. No one who lives in council accommodation has been given their house, why are we not complaining about them?
And what�s with the garden and driveway, they could hardly be 'given' someone else�s could they!!
The parents claim if they worked they would not earn sufficient to make up for the loss in benefit. That�s probably true, so what, are we going to condemn people because they are not professionals with significant earning ability.
�44,000 in benefits. It reads as if they get this in the hand, a large amount is made up of what they do not have to pay ie rent, community charge. The amount in their hands will be considerably less.

[ruby27]

I am surprised that some here are not congratulating this family. They are white, and the children are white. They are therefore single-handed doing their best to stem the tide of Black Muslims overtaking Britain, the world and the universe through their productive breeding whilst the rest of the White British are to busy wearing their blinkers to get on and breed.

I know perhaps we should insist on a referendum, we could vote on how many children couples are allowed and once decided we could ensure we enforced this regime. We could copy the birth regulations that have existed in China.
The questions could be
A) limit on children to stop people getting benefit
B) no limit on children if you children are not going to turn out to be a fundamentalist muslim

[Gromit]

Just figured out why AB Ed never supplies a link. She is probably ashamed that she only reads the Daily Mail. Here is the link she failed to supply.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles /news/news.html?in_article_id=470335&in_page_i d=1770

The quote from the new neighbour who says "They're the wrong sort of people for round here." just about sums the piece up.

The Dail Mail report is bady written and even contains factual errors by the jiurnalist:

"Former book-keeper Samantha, 35, had five children from a previous relationship when she married Carl."

"Paul and Samantha have eight children together and she has four from a previous relationship, making 12 in total.

Just another Daily Mail non-story. You will find that nearly all councils have a few big houses to accommodate large familes. Just the fact that this one is in a place where property values are high does not make this a story.

[NJOK]

Cue some surreal replies along the lines of:

I've worked hard all my life and struggle to pay my mortgage. Why don't I get unemployment benefit or a council house?

[LoftyLottie]

Quote from the people concerned:

He said: "Some people may think we're a bunch of spongers, but it's not true." His wife added: "I was born to have children, it's what I am here for."

Well, I limited my family because I couldn't afford any more and I feel quite angry that people like this are so happy to live off the rest of us.

[ludwig]

The parents are undoubtedly irresponsible scroungers, but you can't throw 12 kids on to the street, or put them into care if they're not being abused or neglected.
That's the problem isn't it. It's the ability to tolerate idiots like this for the greater good, that makes this a decent society.

[LoftyLottie]

Is that so unreasonable NJOK. I have every sympathy with people who for reasons they cannot help need social housing or benefits - I have been there myself. I am afraid I have no sympathy with people who keep having kids even though they can't afford them.

[ludwig]

by the way, check out the childrens's names from the article..
"The couple then had seven of their own: twins Parris-Jordan and Kesla Blu, eight; twins Mason and Peaches, six; Logan, four, and the three-year-old twins Skye and Kalifornya."
Poor little sods.