£1 an hour to clear rubbish...new IDS blitz on the workshy

Okay a little bit of help for you.

There are 10 people in the country.

There are 10 houses.

At the moment, the rent paid is market rate + £400 benefit.

This money goes to the landlords. Tax money, paid to already rich people.

Now, we take away £400 benefit.

The landlords of mortgages they need to pay, holidays they want to go on. A house that makes them zero money is a big liability.

So, the landlords charge a new rent, to ensure the houses are rented out.

The economy now pays the market rate to fill up 10 houses, so the landlords can go on holiday.

What do you notice is different in the new model? Taxes aren't being paid to wealthy people. That's all this £400 benefit achieves. It is a tax on the poor to pay the rich. It is complete and utter *******s.

Houses don't suddenly disappear if housing benefit is removed - all it does it allow people who are in receipt of it (i.e. Labour voters) to get the nicer houses at the expense of people who are working. In the new model, the Labour voters are living in houses they can afford - and the hard working people are able to afford to move into the middle class homes because inflated rents have collapsed.

Do you now see the issue? You're working 10 hours a day in the cold to pay people benefits that price you out of affording to rent a nicer house.

The only problem with the minimum wage is the inflated housing market.

The whole idea is that they're meant to find themselves a job. That's why they're paid job seekers. Society doesn't have an endless pot of money to "give everyone a job" idiotic thinking like that is why we're in so much damn debt. They're meant to find themselves a job with a company that does something productive. Not get paid by tax payers to pick up rubbish - we already pay people to do that.

Im asking what we do now though. There is no other houses for all these people to go to is there? So first the tories need to build houses for people to live. Because I'd rather my tax money helped people stay indoors rather than the street

forcing people to work is not something im particularly comfortable with, especially if its work they dont want to do and if its paid so poorly, I mean, its not even the minimum wage they are talking about paying them, that itself is pretty low, so I really dont see how anyone can in good concience support this disgusting idea.

It's all well and good saying people are supposed to find a job themselves- there isn't exactly an abundance of those around at the moment.

All the mass cuts and privatisations- including the ones that are happening now- have done is move wealth from the many to the few.

I'm not saying it is necessarily possible to give everyone a job, but we would do a damn sight better if the country and the economy was not run by selfish kleptomaniacs.

On reflection however, I can see the merit of some arguments for the introduction of such a scheme. I think there may be a tendency among long-term JSA claimants to become depressed and demotivated, and doing a few 9-5 shifts performing tasks which ostensibly help the community might encourage them a little, and keep them "sharp" so that when they are able to get a job they are used to the demands of working typical length shifts on a regular basis, thus reducing the kind of shock that long-term claimants can experience on returning to work.

Like Profesh says what happens to those who's job it is to pick up litter or manage public flower beds/gardens?

Will they be put out of a job by these people working on a lower wage?

I actually think it would be a good thing to some people. It might make them try a little harder to find a job, you never know.
That being said, I also understand that there are some people who genuinely cannot find a job under the current climate, and it might be a little unfair on them.
I have no idea how you'd separate the lazy from the not lazy, though.

the UK plans to cut benefits. so people will have to live off £30-40 a week for one month. Look at the figures in Germany. They can get 180 Euros = 45 Euros a week just form this extra work PLUS the usual welfare benefit they get. I'd much rather be unemployed in Germany than Britain.

If people choose to have a children and to live at home with them, that is fine.

However screenager2004; I have a very serious problem with your interpretation of what job seekers is for.

It is not money for being unemployed.

It is money for looking for a full time job. If people cannot spare the time to do 30/hours week of work, then I have to wonder if they have the time to do the amount of applications necessary to get a job to begin with.

People choose to have children, nobody forces them to. Their child-care arrangements are their own problem. Also, given the amount of benefits available for people who have children I don't quite see why you're acting like unemployed parents are at rock bottom.

forcing people to work is not something im particularly comfortable with, especially if its work they dont want to do and if its paid so poorly, I mean, its not even the minimum wage they are talking about paying them, that itself is pretty low, so I really dont see how anyone can in good concience support this disgusting idea.

Social services takes the children away of course. What do you think happens?

It's a form of child abuse - if the parent does it then it is up to social services to act. We don't pay people extra money just to not let their children starve however - they've already been given the money to stop the child from going hungry!

So people spend a longer period of time looking for a job. Okay - so what? What exactly is your point here?

I don't see how this changes any of the fundamentals. People were expected to work for job seekers before (by looking for a full time job and proving it). Now they are expected to work for job seekers....just like they were before?! There is no change.

People who have a better life on benefits then those who are working are the selfish ones - expecting everyone else to pay for their excesses. Just look at the BBC strike at the moment. Poor people are forced to pay as much for a TV licence as the rich - yet where does that money go? Towards paying a university graduate £80,000 to read a ****ing autocue. You need to wakeup and smell the coffee.