Why are we treated like this?

Queenofdisabilities
Queenofdisabilities Online Community Member Posts: 91 Connected
in Coffee lounge
Why does it feel like every year when the budget comes out our benefits barely go up?
Yet constantly the government's fat cats are always given massive pay rises.
Its not just me thinking this is it?
The rich get richer & the poor get poorer.

Comments

  • janer1967
    janer1967 Online Community Member Posts: 21,922 Championing
    I agree in part bit my thoughts are with people like nurses who dont get enough in first place 

    There are lots of employees out there who sont get any annual increase and haven't done for years 

    Those on benefits do get a annual increase which isnt much but reflective 

    Myself personally would give my benefit increase to the hard working nurses gladly 

    But agree rich get richer and gov leaders and mps get far too much 
  • leeCal
    leeCal Online Community Member Posts: 7,537 Championing
    edited March 2021

    All weekly PIP rates. 

    The standard sum daily living is £59.70 at present, but will increase to £60.00, a rise of 30p.

    The enhanced rate of the daily living component will also increase, from £89.15 to £89.60, a rise of 45p.

    standard mobility part is £23.60 which increases to £23.70 an increase of 10p.

    enhanced mobility part is rising from £62.25 to £62.55, an increase of 30p.

    These increased rates are payable from April 6th 2021.

  • NotReally
    NotReally Online Community Member Posts: 70 Empowering
    Queenofdisabilities said:
    Why does it feel like every year when the budget comes out our benefits barely go up?
    Yet constantly the government's fat cats are always given massive pay rises.
    Its not just me thinking this is it?
    The rich get richer & the poor get poorer.
    The UK has serious issues with systemic corruption; so ingrained as to be invisible to the people perpetrating it.  Combine this with the very worrying fact that those who administer the country's finances (both present and historic) seem to lack the most basic understanding of how financial affairs of nation states actually work, and ... well, it looks like we're going down the austerity path again, despite announcements to the contrary.  If this is the case, then on top of the last 10-ish years, the idiocy of brexit, we're looking at potentially crippling our economy for a generation or more.

  • NotReally
    NotReally Online Community Member Posts: 70 Empowering
    edited March 2021
    woodbine said:
    @NotReally nobody could have planned for the pandemic
    That's ... not really (heh) the case.  Predicting this pandemic, at this time - no, of course not, that's not how probability works, but how probability does work is that, yes, something like this was (almost certainly) going to happen at some point.  And we were actively not prepared, due to multiple issues ... to say nothing of the initial "response".
    woodbine said:
    but credit where it's due the government has poured hundreds of billions into doing its best to protecting the economy and jobs, unemployment was forecast by the OBR to be 11.1% this year the forecast is now 6% or 1.5 million fewer jobs lost.
    Yes, it could have been worse, but that's pretty bloody bad.  The real issue is how bad it will be going forward, which I initially had some hope about, until after the budget, and especially with having started to be shaken out ... and I'm not so positive at this point.
    woodbine said:
    The even better news is that the very poorest won't be forced to foot this bill, whilst large profitable corporations will see their tax bills increase 25%
    Unfortunately, most all of us will foot the bill, and it'll be the poorest that it hits the most. The changes in PIP quoted above are a good example, along with the public sector pay freeze, which represents both an astonishingly poor understanding of basic economics, and that all of us are going to suffer because of it.

    To clarify - the PIP increases and the public sector pay represent a reduction in income.
    I would question your assertion that we have systemic corruption, I have no idea where you get that idea from.
    This is ... well, it's not complex, but it's difficult (for me at least) to communicate, as it takes a change in reference frame to see. While I am happy to talk about this stuff, it's mentally costly and I need to focus that energy on dealing with other difficult communication tasks, which are, I hope you will understand, far more important to me, the main of which is trying to resolve the situation around visitation with my son.
    However, as some examples, I will point to: the expenses scandal, the cash for access scandal, the PPE contracts last year, recent ("attempted"?) contact from a former prime minister and government departments. That this stuff is in the public domain is a pretty large red flag as to what else is not generally in the public domain ... ok ... other stuff to put here, but I'm losing the ability to do so. And it's advisabile to be somewhat circumspect, especially about smaller (but more worrying) examples.
    woodbine said:
    As for brexit that's done and dusted and no one has starved to death due to lack of imports have they?
    Again, not really (heh) the point; the point is what the long term economic impact will be.  Long term, as in multigenerational impact, most concerningly on the least well off of us.  Partially, the issue here is with what we won't see, rather than what we will see.  To help get a grasp of this it's worth taking a look at the disparity between countries that engaged with the industrial revolution and those that didn't ... in some cases the difference is still pretty noticable.

    For what it's worth ... I desperately hope that I am wrong about all any of this.
  • Lisatho11987777
    Lisatho11987777 Scope Member Posts: 5,874 Championing
    I agree with Mike we haven't felt the impact yet with brevit and corona virus on top in my opinion I think the UK will be on its knees untill the UK can be built back up again it is going to get worse before it gets better the impact hasn't been felt yet 
  • Lisatho11987777
    Lisatho11987777 Scope Member Posts: 5,874 Championing
    @janer1967 I agree with you about nurses but I think its carers that need a pay rise most are on low pay not many carers get a liveing wage  and they  work long hours and work hard when I was foing care up until last year I started work at 7am and I working until 11.00pm 6 days a week and sometimes seven days if I was covering other people's shifts 

    Many of my friends have gone above and beyond being carers in the pandemic some have lost their lives  
  • Lisatho11987777
    Lisatho11987777 Scope Member Posts: 5,874 Championing
    @woodbine we will see lots of people lost their jobs and lots of business closed down only time will tell alot of people have spent savings 
  • Queenofdisabilities
    Queenofdisabilities Online Community Member Posts: 91 Connected
    Janer1967,
    I would give the 
    Heroines &  Heroes of the NHS a very big pay rise if I could.
    I used to be 1 of them.
  • Quinty
    Quinty Online Community Member Posts: 47 Contributor
    And they are the most unhelpful unsympathetic people. 

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