Spotted by Bob E in The Guardian:
Social security benefits such as universal credit and crisis loans should be issued on debit card-style cards, despite fears that they will enable authorities to block recipients from spending the cash on alcohol, cigarettes and gambling, according to a report by the thinktank Demos...
Polling carried out by Demos for the report found that 59% of the public supported some form of state control over benefits, with support highest for controls on payments to claimants with gambling or substance addictions (77%). Over half of respondents identified "things that are bad for your health" such as smoking and booze as areas on which benefits should not be spent.(1)
The report, which was financed by Mastercard, found that use of the cards is already widespread among English local authorities, with a quarter using them to issue personal budget payments to social care service-users. Of those local authorities not using the cards for personal social care budgets, a third said they plan to introduce them over the next 12 months, with many attracted by the apparent opportunity to make substantial savings in administrative and audit costs.
1) Common sense tells us that it is impossible to spend more than a fifth of your benefits on smoking and booze, for the simple reason that four-fifths of the cost is taxes thereon. A benefit claimant - or an old age pensioner for that matter - who "spends" £20 a week on booze and fags is actually only spending £4 on tobacco and alcohol, the other £16 goes straight back to the government, so effectively, this person's benefits or pension is being reduced by £16 a week automatically.
Tuesday, 29 January 2013
"The report, which was financed by Mastercard..."
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
9 comments:
...and they would have to disable "Cash back" on these cards too!.
They need to add tattoos to that list.
My single mum friend gets a new one every couple of months.
Oh, and Ugg boots.
BJ, thus putting half of tattoo parlours out of business, what would that achieve?
I agree on Ugg Boots though.
People have been trying to stop the poor spending their money on drink for centuries, with no noticeable success. I think the cards are a good idea, though, because it will keep the Righteous happy and, as you say, benefits claimants will still be able to buy fags and booze, so it's win-win.
BJ, there's a natural limit to how many tattoos you can have.
B, maybe that's the reason for the "obesity epidemic" among the "lower classes". It's because they're trying to make more space for tattoos?
PJH, that's a good page!
What they miss off is £10 billion or £20 billion a year which smokers save the taxpayer by doing the decent thing and dying a bit younger and hence claimaing a lot less old age pension.
Ta, but it's alluded to in the next section Mark:
"Finally, there is the alleged cost to the 'tax-payer' in the form of old-aged smokers
[...]
o additionally they will be drawing down less state retirement pension"
Just don't have any concrete references to be able to list credible figures.
PJH, I did the workings. If it is true that smokers die ten years younger (or whatever the bansturbators claim) then it's between £10 and £20 billion a year (you have to make certain assumptions one way or another).
"It's because they're trying to make more space for tattoos?"
It could be because, as you get fatter, so your tattoos increase in size, making the original outlay better value. The converse is a reason for not slimming, too.
Post a Comment