Tuesday 16 April 2013

I Am Gobsmacked

This post is possibly going to be a bit controversial, but hey it's my blog and I'll cry if I want to.

The benefits cap came into force for certain areas yesterday, there are some exceptions to the cap, in broad terms over 65s, disabled & those working and claiming top ups.

The revelation that had my mouth hanging open was that as a single person, my income (were I claiming benefits) would now be capped at a maximum of £350 per week, £80 MORE THAN I AM BRINGING HOME FOR WORKING FULL TIME!  



How are people able to claim so much that they can be capped at £350 and complain that they are losing money?  

When I was made redundant (for the second time) a few years ago, I was awarded the princely sum of £64.30 Job Seekers Allowance per week, plus I had my Council Tax of £74 per month paid, an average weekly total of less than £80. The house is paid for so I knew that I needed, and would receive, no help there.  I had an agreed travel time of 90 minutes as a radius in which to search for work and I was threatened with losing my JSA when I refused to apply for a 20 hour per week job (4 hours per day) that was going to take me over 2 hours to travel to.

So how do people get away with claiming so much for so long?  Why are people claiming benefits able to afford a better lifestyle than those working?  I have no issue with Working Tax Credit, after all you can only claim this if you are working but on a low income, at least these claimants are wanting to work even if they have to accept low paying jobs due to location or ability.

I am now going to get ready to leave for my (comparatively) low paying job!

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