Jobcentre suicide attempts.

[MrSmith]

They could cut the welfare bill by stopping tax credits and upping the minimum wage to a livable standard.

 

Employees deserve a fair day's pay for a fair day's work. We are, in fact, subsidising employers and allowing them to increase their profit at taxpayers expense.

 

Maybe there should be a two or three tier system, depending on the size of the organisation, so smaller employers are exempt, in which case their employees could be subsidised.

 

The gap between rich and poor is growing alarmingly and fast. When it reaches critical mass, we will become a third world country.

 

Actually it’s the employers subsidising wages because it is the tax they pay that pays the tax credits bill. Sadly until the poorest in this country are prepared to work for a very low standard of living like people do in other parts of the world, unemployment will remain high. There are millions of unemployed Europeans and many will work for much less than some of the unemployed British will work for.

[Rupert_Baehr]

They could cut the welfare bill by stopping tax credits and upping the minimum wage to a livable standard.

 

Employees deserve a fair day's pay for a fair day's work. We are, in fact, subsidising employers and allowing them to increase their profit at taxpayers expense...

 

If employers are making so much money out of each minimum-wage employee they take on why aren't they all taking on hundreds of extra unemployed people?

[skinz]

If employers are making so much money out of each minimum-wage employee they take on why aren't they all taking on hundreds of extra unemployed people?

 

They do (A4e). Dressed up a little differently I know, but same effect.

[pottedplant]

They could cut the welfare bill by stopping tax credits and upping the minimum wage to a livable standard.

 

Employees deserve a fair day's pay for a fair day's work. We are, in fact, subsidising employers and allowing them to increase their profit at taxpayers expense.

 

Maybe there should be a two or three tier system, depending on the size of the organisation, so smaller employers are exempt, in which case their employees could be subsidised.

 

The gap between rich and poor is growing alarmingly and fast. When it reaches critical mass, we will become a third world country.

 

Exactly this- perhaps Danny128 may lead the way.

[pottedplant]

If employers are making so much money out of each minimum-wage employee they take on why aren't they all taking on hundreds of extra unemployed people?

 

Because they don't need more people to produce / deliver what is needed?

[I1L2T3]

Upping the minimum wage would just put people out of work, just as introducing the minimum wage in the first place did. Firms would increase automation and eliminate

low-skilled jobs.

 

The problem isn't that the minimum wage is too low, it's that the cost of housing has been kept artificially high for years, and no political party has the balls to do something about it.

 

Spot on. Housing, because of the vast public housing stock we used to have, was subject to some level of price control. People will wake up at some point and realise that:

 

1. The private/BTL way of providing so much housing that used to be in public hands is not efficient for the tax payer or the economy.

 

2. We need to build a lot more housing, especially public housing and affordable housing

 

3. High house prices are a massive drag on the economy. They're choking the life out of it in so many ways

 

It's not just housing though - transport and utilities are all expensive too. Food as well.

 

Take transport. I live on the edge of Sheffield, not for from Low Edges and Batemoor. If I get on a First Bus (e.g. 75) it costs £2.40 each way to town. That's £4.80 there and back for one person. I can't believe for a minute it costs First any more than a couple of pounds to provide that return service.

 

Take childcare. Working? Got young children? Affordable council-provided services are few and far between. £400 per kid a month to have them looked after privately.

 

We are being taken to the cleaners with the costs of so many day to day essentials. That is why the minimum wage isn't sufficient. So much of what we need is provided by private companies that take massive profit. Where working people can't afford the basics taxpayers make up the difference so the private companies can continue to take their profits.

 

First thing to do though - getting housing costs down should be the number one priority of any government.

[I1L2T3]

They do (A4e). Dressed up a little differently I know, but same effect.

 

Yep, that's how it works. And those workers are even more state subsidized than the ones on the minimum wage.

 

And the bizarre situation we have is that this government would love to cut taxes, but they know that to keep their private sector donors supplied with subsidized or free workers that tax cannot be cut significantly.

[MrSmith]

Spot on. Housing, because of the vast public housing stock we used to have, was subject to some level of price control. People will wake up at some point and realise that:

 

1. The private/BTL way of providing so much housing that used to be in public hands is not efficient for the tax payer or the economy.

 

2. We need to build a lot more housing, especially public housing and affordable housing

 

3. High house prices are a massive drag on the economy. They're choking the life out of it in so many ways

 

It's not just housing though - transport and utilities are all expensive too. Food as well.

 

Take transport. I live on the edge of Sheffield, not for from Low Edges and Batemoor. If I get on a First Bus (e.g. 75) it costs £2.40 each way to town. That's £4.80 there and back for one person. I can't believe for a minute it costs First any more than a couple of pounds to provide that return service.

 

Take childcare. Working? Got young children? Affordable council-provided services are few and far between. £400 per kid a month to have them looked after privately.

 

We are being taken to the cleaners with the costs of so many day to day essentials. That is why the minimum wage isn't sufficient. So much of what we need is provided by private companies that take massive profit. Where working people can't afford the basics taxpayers make up the difference so the private companies can continue to take their profits.

 

First thing to do though - getting housing costs down should be the number one priority of any government.

 

Subsidising housing costs isn’t good way of doing things whether they are owned by the state or a private company, Housing just need to be affordable without a subsidy, that means freeing up land for housing that is used to feed us or decreasing the amount of people that require an house. If you look at the cost of an house and borrow money to buy it, renting it out isn’t that profitable.

Childcare costs shouldn’t be subsidised, one parant should stay home and care for their children unless they can afford to pay for care. Childminder don’t make a lot of money and in many cases work for well below minimum wage.

[Anna B]

Subsidising housing costs isn’t good way of doing things whether they are owned by the state or a private company, Housing just need to be affordable without a subsidy, that means freeing up land for housing that is used to feed us or decreasing the amount of people that require an house. If you look at the cost of an house and borrow money to buy it, renting it out isn’t that profitable.

Childcare costs shouldn’t be subsidised, one parant should stay home and care for their children unless they can afford to pay for care. Childminder don’t make a lot of money and in many cases work for well below minimum wage.

 

There are a great many brown field sites that could be developed without using agricultural land. And I read somewhere that there are thousands of perfectly good houses standing empty which could be brought back into use.

 

As for your childcare point, I would tend to agree that ideally one parent should stay at home to look after them - I think a lot of societies ills could be improved with good parenting, but unfortunately it now takes two incomes to run an average family home.

[MrSmith]

There are a great many brown field sites that could be developed without using agricultural land. And I read somewhere that there are thousands of perfectly good houses standing empty which could be brought back into use.

 

As for your childcare point, I would tend to agree that ideally one parent should stay at home to look after them - I think a lot of societies ills could be improved with good parenting, but unfortunately it now takes two incomes to run an average family home.

 

Unfortunately the last government demolished most of those houses under the pathfinder scream. I agree regarding brown field sights which should be the only land available for new housing.