More than a million have used UK food banks in the past year

[Uncle C]

We need at least £9.00 per hour minimum wage.

Don't you just think that will encourage more foreign workers. The problem is not the money, but that the Brits feel too superior to take the low paying jobs, hence foreign workers fill the void.

 

[somerset]

........, but that the Brits feel too superior to take the low paying jobs, hence foreign workers fill the void.

What a crock of BS,..... the low paying jobs are paid at that low level BECAUSE there is an endless supply of EU 'economic' migrants to fill the void, who don't have geographical and family commitments to an area, or indeed economical commitments to pay rent, run a car, raise a family, LIVE A LIFE. They are simply here to earn a vastly superior hourly rate to what can be achieved in large areas of the EU, the East in particular, they live 2,3,4 or more to a house, share the rent and outgoings. Its the penalty of a free market economy, which I support by the way, but of course, the suppression of the entry level wage rates have huge implications on those with roots and commitments in the country.

As someone said above somewhere in this thread, you cannot simply raise the minimum wage, that would just encourage more economic migrants and result in the general price structure to increase accordingly..... economics, supply and demand.

 

[Deleted member 22389]

Don't you just think that will encourage more foreign workers. The problem is not the money, but that the Brits feel too superior to take the low paying jobs, hence foreign workers fill the void.

Thing is how can anybody afford to buy a home in this country, put food on the table on £6.31 per hour? Even with two people working you still can't do it. The reason that people from other countries and are able to do it is because they come here with a clean slate. As was the case where I used to live it was not unusual to see 5,6,7 people living under one roof. People are able to save their money, either stay in the UK or move back to their country of origin and most importantly able to afford property in their own country. What is on offer for people who are trapped, anywhere they go in the EU they are not going to see their hourly wage trippled or quadropled like workers who have migrated here have seen.

WHen people like Clegg to say we are stronger, better together is a complete load of rubbish. The EU is only working for employers and people who come here.

 

[Uncle C]

What a crock of BS,..... the low paying jobs are paid at that low level BECAUSE there is an endless supply of EU 'economic' migrants to fill the void, who don't have geographical and family commitments to an area, or indeed economical commitments to pay rent, run a car, raise a family, LIVE A LIFE. They are simply here to earn a vastly superior hourly rate to what can be achieved in large areas of the EU, the East in particular, they live 2,3,4 or more to a house, share the rent and outgoings. Its the penalty of a free market economy, which I support by the way, but of course, the suppression of the entry level wage rates have huge implications on those with roots and commitments in the country.

As someone said above somewhere in this thread, you cannot simply raise the minimum wage, that would just encourage more economic migrants and result in the general price structure to increase accordingly..... economics, supply and demand.

Funny how everyone feels they have a right to earn more money than they do.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

I saw a bit on the news recently about food banks. It followed a bloke of about 30 who could not pay his bills and was about to be evicted.

They filmed a cut away of him mournfully looking at all the bills he had to pay... one was for Sky Digital - £74.00. You can't help but lose a bit of sympathy at this point.

At face value, you'd obviously have no sympathy with a case like that. But I *suppose* there is just a chance that he used to work, had a decent, reasonably paid job that allowed him to afford such luxuries as Sky TV, but then became unemployed through no fault of his own. I don't pay for Sky but I'd assume that it's like a mobile phone contract- you sign up for a fixed period, and you can't just decide to cancel and stop payments one month if your circumstances change?

Maybe it's a bill left over from when he was previously employed, which now he's unable to get out of.

Or maybe he's just frivolous with his spending. Who knows....

 

[Uncle C]

Thing is how can anybody afford to buy a home in this country, put food on the table on £6.31 per hour?

This is nothing new. People on low wages have never been able to buy a home - get real.

 

[somerset]

At face value, you'd obviously have no sympathy with a case like that. But I *suppose* there is just a chance that he used to work, had a decent, reasonably paid job that allowed him to afford such luxuries as Sky TV, but then became unemployed through no fault of his own. I don't pay for Sky but I'd assume that it's like a mobile phone contract- you sign up for a fixed period, and you can't just decide to cancel and stop payments one month if your circumstances change?

Maybe it's a bill left over from when he was previously employed, which now he's unable to get out of.

Or maybe he's just frivolous with his spending. Who knows....

Come on Edna, you don't normally sit on the fence,.... you must have a view... it wouldn't be a proper NSC thread without a pointed comment or two from 'Her Majesty'.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Stella Street. They were stocking up at Mick's corner shop man!

"Have you seen the date on these marshmellows?"

 

[Lady Whistledown]

Thing is how can anybody afford to buy a home in this country, put food on the table on £6.31 per hour?

Surely if you raised the minimum wage to a level that would enable every worker to buy a home, demand for houses would soar, and then house prices would rapidly rocket to a level that would no longer be within the range of the minimum wage workers again?

I'm no economist (clearly) but I'd have thought it would be potentially self-defeating if every minimum wage worker in the UK suddenly was able to buy a house on their salary.

 

[somerset]

This is nothing new. People on low wages have never been able to buy a home - get real.

There you have it,... the sense of entitlement that exists in this country is remarkable to be honest...... cut your cloth....

 

[Lady Whistledown]

Come on Edna, you don't normally sit on the fence,.... you must have a view... it wouldn't be a proper NSC thread without a pointed comment or two from 'Her Majesty'.

Well that is my view. If he's spanking his money on Sky and not providing food for his family, you'd have to question his priorities. But there's always two sides to every story, and he might well be a decent bloke who just happens to be saddled with inescapable debts which date from the time when he did have money and could afford luxuries.

He might. Just trying to be fair.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

As someone said above somewhere in this thread, you cannot simply raise the minimum wage, that would just encourage more economic migrants and result in the general price structure to increase accordingly..... economics, supply and demand.

Creating stable working conditions with a decent minimum wage can improve the economy as it gives the public confidence and money to spend. And in a country which is so dependent on high street spending it will have a big effect.

 

[Beach Hut]

There you have it,... the sense of entitlement that exists in this country is remarkable to be honest...... cut your cloth....

These days people don't seem to want to that though and given money is easily lent out......

 

[The Antikythera Mechanism]

I have to say that I didn't realise the scale of the problem. I just googled "food banks near me", and there are four in a 10 mile radius - Farnham and Fleet being the nearest to me and these are affluent areas. I shall be donating food from now on, now that I know where they are.

 

[mikeyjh]

There you have it,... the sense of entitlement that exists in this country is remarkable to be honest...... cut your cloth....

That's a silly statement - We're talking about people struggling to eat, not about those in the middle classes whingeing about being able to get on the 'property ladder'. I suspect that, to the people using food banks, the idea of home ownership is not something they can even dream of right now.

These people have no cloth to cut.

 

[somerset]

Creating stable working conditions with a decent minimum wage can improve the economy as it gives the public confidence and money to spend. And in a country which is so dependent on high street spending it will have a big effect.

Indeed it would, I cannot argue with your statement.... but that strategy and outcome, I feel, is based on a stable internal workforce, not the largely new transient workforce we are trying to accommodate aswell.

 

[mikeyjh]

These days people don't seem to want to that though and given money is easily lent out......

Yep, generally to the middle classes wanting to borrow 4/5/6 * their salaries to blast their way up the 'property ladder', not to the poor who can't afford to eat.

 

[Beach Hut]

Yep, generally to the middle classes wanting to borrow 4/5/6 * their salaries to blast their way up the 'property ladder', not to the poor who can't afford to eat.

So just blame the middle classes for this problem then ?

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

This is nothing new. People on low wages have never been able to buy a home - get real.

True. But it is rather sad that bright hard working people who have got themselves into a position where they earn well over the national average cannot affort to buy a house; which is the case for some people I know. This to me is absurd. You expect some reward for such achievement...and being able to buy the roof over your head does not seem too much to ask.

 

[somerset]

Yep, generally to the middle classes wanting to borrow 4/5/6 * their salaries to blast their way up the 'property ladder', not to the poor who can't afford to eat.

It isnt the middle classes that head for Wonga in their tens of thousands to fund a new 50 inch TV or an all inclusive holiday to the Med, ... is it?