Taking the pee

I'd say this is pretty much bang on.

A lot of people have a perception of benefits claimants that is based on what the media is telling us. The media doesn't report the norm, because the norm is not news worthy.

When the media does report something, they don't do so objectively. Because people won't buy the news if its objective. Imagine this headline; "20% of under 25s out of work". Obviously we therefore have a generation of lazy job dodgers, and it is emotive enough to get people talking. Now what if it said "80% of under 25s in work, and most of the remaining 20% trying desperately to find work or improve their prospects through training". Wouldn't that just be the most dull news?

All that said, there are career job dodgers. I have no doubt of that, I've known one or two over the years. I used to live next door to a family whose career was to make children to increase their family allowance income, and when their eldest son turned 16 and didn't go to college so they could claim for him til he was 19, they threw him out. People like that know every trick in the book, from breeding for family allowance, to playing on mild back pain to get invalidity/incapacity etc, to get other relatives to temporarily stay with them at their council house so as to get it declared overcrowded so they get a better house etc. I do believe these sort are a distinct minority though. These are the ones that need to be the focus of attention.

I also agree to some extent about the immigration issue. Although I don't believe it is clear cut, or fair to simply close the borders. Lots of Brits go to live abroad. That means that they are immigrants into someone else's country. I believe immigration should be tightly controlled, but sadly our last bunch made us part of the EU, effectively making it impossible to control our borders. However there is one type of immigrant that we should eject regardless. Those we sometimes hear of in the media that are vocal about their hatred of Britain, and all things British, should simply be told that if they hate us that much, don't live among us, and then we kick them out. Sadly we can't do that either because the EU court of human rights will jump in and say we have to like them and give them money and accomodation.

 

Basically, if you`ve not paid into the pot, you take nothing out. If you are not prepared to work and contribute then you get nothing when you don`t work.

 

The Maastricht Treaty was signed on February 7, 1992 by John Major. The treaty created the European Union (EU). It was previously known as the European Economic Community (EEC) or Common Market and Ted Heath took us into that in 1973.

 

Yes, but what we voted for then as the Common Market bears no relation to what it is today ........

Val

 

True. I voted yes in the the 1975 referendum held by Harold Wilson's government, but that was for membership of just a trading community. I hoped to vote NO in a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, but have been denied the chance.

 

Hello my lovely . In can understand your point of veiw but the problem is that there r many, many machines that do the work that all those people on the dole used to do and with the best will in the world , there r simply not the jobs there for the whole population and as clueless says , if u r one of the unlucky ones who for one reason or another end up being on the sticky end, drugs r an easy way of coping with your situation.
If we were all to go back to luditism , there would be work for all but the owners of the machines would be really upset about losing their wealth and we'd need a shedload more horses !!! : )