£26,000 benefits cap - an example case ...

[sunny-dave]

I've always vaguely wondered how any family could get over £30,000 a year on benefits. This article explains where it comes from and allows the family to explain where it goes out to.

Perhaps we can have some reasonable discussion this time, instead of the usual entrenched positions - at least we have some actual numbers supplied instead of vague generalisations and prejudices.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-16812185

Personally, I think (even though they have undoubtedly made an effort to select a 'sympathetic' case) that this isn't going to persuade many people that a £26,000 cap isn't a good idea.

There are many, many working families who would like to be able to afford some of the regular weekly outgoings listed in the table at the end ...

Over to you .. but play nicely **please **

[cazzz1975]

200 cigarettes AND a large pouch of tobacco?

the benefits cap would be a good incentive to kick the weed

[Graham-W]

Close the Sky subscription, cut down on the mobiles, stop smoking and cut down on the lager.
They'll be well in pocket.

[cazzz1975]

32 pound a week on mobiles seems excessive, if they have to have a phone a cheap pay as you go used sparingly is a good alternative, or jus not have a mobile.

if they cut down on needless excesses they can live well on the cut in my opinion

[sunny-dave]

Yes Graham - that was my instant response too - but should we be saying that life on benefit is a fun free zone ?

[EDDIE51]

I have read that link but I think the couple used are actually missing out on a large amount of benefit.
The wife has Bi-polar disorder , this could well qualify for DLA (disabled living allowance) at the middle or higher rate, if she does qualify the man automatically gets carers allowance as well
So, DLA with higher rate mobility allowance and middle rate care allowance is £101.05 a week, plus carers allowance is another £55.55 a week , so if they claim and get DLA the income will go up by £106.60 per week.
DLA and carers allowance are not affected by other benefits and they are not taken into consideration for working out housing benefit/ council tax benefit .

[Graham-W]

I'm not saying it should be a fun free zone, but.... People on a low wage or pension have to budget and stay within their income. My son works very hard for a low income. He has to budget with his income and he has very few luxuries.

[annie0000]

so - taking the ciggies/tobacco/beer/sky tv etc aside - they have the best part of £400 a month left for birthdays, uniforms etc. We both work and we have a "nice" life - albeit getting squeezed by the day - and I don't have that amount to spend at the end of the month.....and we don't smoke, rarely drink and rarely go out.

[Ankou]

thats for a family of 8 - is that really 'typical' ?

if so then £30 a week on food each, 3 cans of lager each, £4 each for mobile phones doesn't sound that excessive.......

[ummmm]

Of course benefits should be a 'no fun' zone.

[annie0000]

I personally don't think that they should spend nothing on socialising, humans are social animals. However, they are spending on things that aren't neccesities as well. Also, if his skills are out of date and he can't get a job - 10 years is plenty of time to have worked that out and either retrain or find something else to do.

[EDDIE51]

Of course if they are awarded high rate DLA they can trade it in for a free motability car and still get the care component of £49 a week and carers allowance of £55.55 a week , so £104.55 a week extra and a free car that is changed every 3 years for a new one.
Or if they have a car anyway they can keep the whole DLA / Carers allowance AND get free road tax for their own car.

[annie0000]

not sure if the 5 year should be drinking lager and £30 a head on food is plenty when you are on a budget and are in all day and therefore have time to cook from scratch.

[EDDIE51]

Forgot to add, the benefits list does not include free school meals , automatic for benefit claimants, and all councils have a policy to give yearly grants for school uniforms of up to £200 per child per year . They should get £3,20 per child per week in 'Healthy Start' vouchers for fresh fruit, milk and veg as well , the BBC is either being 'economical with the truth' or the family are not claiming all that they are entutled to !

[Dodger666]

So the taxpayer is providing this family with, Sky TV, fags & tobacco, booze & mobile phones. Nobody forced them to have seven kids.

As the OP says, there are many working families existing on less.

[McMouse]

Pity they didn't spend some of their benefits on condoms. Things were very tight when we got married and had a child.......we managed by cutting down on everything except essentials. There was no budget for fags, booze or even a tv. If we really wanted something we had to save up.

[cazzz1975]

I dont consider mobile phones to be essential so yes, excessive, if you have to have one let it be a cheap pay and go

[whiskeryron]

Firstly let me say that the husband in the example is unable to work through no fault of his own, the wife obviously cannot work because of her condition, they are therefore entitled to claim some benefits. The compulsory bills (c/tax,w/rates,'phone & b/band) amount to £2080 p/a. Of the other costs shown I think that they should cancel Sky t/v ( £780 p/a) & revert to Freesat (using the sky dish & sat receiver box), stop going out & paying pub prices & buy cheaper beer from the Supermarket. 200 ciggies a week works out at 28 per day, I would suggest that if they are for wife, to cut to 20 per day ( or better still use roll-ups from tobacco in loose pack bought per week). I am sure that by examining their weekly outgoings they could learn to live on less per week, they may even manage a holiday by saving a small amount each week.
When my wife & I started our married life together we looked at income & made sure we could save a certain amount each week for holidays, & although it was a struggle at times we never ever spent more than we had coming in.

Ron.

[annie0000]

Ron, okay he is unemployed because demand for his particular skill dried up .......10 years ago!! So he has sat on his erse for the last 10 years drinking beer and watching sky movies when he could have been retraining/looking for alternative employment/learning to cook so that they could reduce their food bill.

[annie0000]

...and being a bit controversial here, but there are many people working with conditions such as his wife has and in fact being at home all day may actually be making them worse.

[whiskeryron]

Despite what we are told by the government are there actually re-training programmes available all over the country ?.