instead of the government giving extra cash to families why doesnt it give

[LAUREN K]

i completely agree something needs to be done. yet the people that go out there and get full time jobs to support their families get done for more national insurance. so if you are a poor family you get cash handed to you if you are a hard working family you get more taken from you

[vici]

some of the benifits as vouchers? all i seem to hear is about poverty stricken families

then in the budget the chancellor said ok we will give these families extra money

is it just me or is it stupid to think that this extra money is really only going to cover the price of the cigarettes and alcohol that the chancellor put the price up of today

if he were to give some of the benifits as vouchers, that can not be sold on perhaps then we could guarantee that the benefits are spent on clothing and feeding the children of these families

for example if a family recieved £20 a week benefits, perhaps he could make sure that half of ths money is for vouchers for a fruit and veg shop, or a childrens clothes shop, or to pay the electricity and gas

this way the small businesses like local fruit and veg shops or butchers would make money as well, so it would help the economy in this way

also as a tax payer know that my taxes were being given to people to spend on what it is ment to be spent on, rather than me
being jelous when i see teenage mums buying cigarettes and alcohol, and wearing fashionable clothes top of the range mobile phones, and having sky tv

all of these things i myself in full time employment still can not afford

what do you think


xxx vici
yes i am sour, and i expect a lot of people are, on one hand we hear that they want us to swear allegance to this country, but it has not treated me the way i deserve, which is failry

if people on benefits can afford alcohol and go out then as a tax payer, why cant i

also if this sort of scheme was set up it would make sense for fruit and veg shops to open for this

what would be wrong with telling people what they could and couldnt buy, rationing them, at the end of the day it is mine and other tax payers money, they didnt earn it, they just earned the right to spend it, on what they want

also if the water rates go up, i expect people just dont bother paying it,

but if cigarettes and alcohol goes up, people will always find money for this if they want it

[Eclipse]

i absolutely agree with you, but i dont think it will ever happen

[jeanimus]

first of all if you gave vouchers it dictates what people can buy and how much they can spend on it- they may prefer to get clothes from a charity shop rather than the more expensive shops where vouchers are accepted.
Second the 'local fruit and veg shop' doesnt exist where I live. if you want reasonably priced fresh veg its a bus ride to the market (who are the cheapest and probably wouldnt accept vouchers)
Then you have the cost of posting these vouchers to people because they cannot be distributed via the post office because most peoples benefit is paid into a bank account, so they will have to be posted, which renders them liable to wrong delivery, getting lost or being stolen.
I work with lots of teenage mums (and dads) most of whom cant afford cigs and alcohol. The ones who do are generally not paying other bills and end up in trouble over it.
And you also have the expense of setting up and administering the scheme which would put up the cost of benefits enormously.
The massive increase in child benefit for example, which is 45p per week is not going to cover the rise in water rates for example, which is going to be a dam site more than 45p.

[SQUIRRELEATER]

I think you are just plain sour....plenty of people work hard for their families without smoking and drinking or actually enjoying life, this govt takes money off them through stealth taxes and then get them to fill in forms to beg for what is rightfully theirs, and you want them to be given VOUCHERS, why not go the whole hog and hand out ration books. Do not believe everything this shower tell you.