A typical DM 'story'.

Sel - please do not put words in my mouth. There is no way I am being dragged into a futile argument.

I'm sure Liz Jones keeps her job because of all the head scratching about her circumstances. I got fed up with her constant wingeing when she lived on Exmoor. No wonder the locals were glad to see the back of her.

My money's on Midge Ure....

also have to read about Liz Jones each week, cant imagine why!!

the rubbish she spiels out, so hard up and yet she had to have designer this and that quite entertaining!!

found it interesting Greatnan amazing that she was so proud of all her benefits and felt she really deserved to be kept by other people, there does not seem any pride in people like that.

Amazing that she could save so much to waste at Xmas.

I think the point being really that it is way too easy to bring children into the world and have the working public pay for them, there is not stigma or shame in having kids out of wedlock anymore.

Must admit she was doing very nicely and as she said why would she want to work for minimum wage and be worse off??

I am sure there are hundreds like her.

merlot I love Liz Jones, please don't tell me the ROCKSTAR is a figment of her imagination - to keep me buying The Mail on Sunday' ??

She loves cats and all animals so I'll forgive her anything

Greatnan I am puzzled too. Your origional post questioned this story that was reported in the DM - they'd picked it up from Closer magazine. You seem to imply that anyone who finds any credibility in the story is somehow 'a typical DM reader who can't do Maths' As what this girl has said in two publications you now deem lies, I'm not sure where we go from there

No indeed, Greatnan, neither have I - but as the main point of the OP seemed to be that the figures didn't add up, I felt it needed pointing out that not everyone necessarily agrees with that.

I'm more interested in the identity of Liz Jones' rock star

We are all entitled to our own opinion. I have no wish to argue with anybody.

Without knowing her exact outgoings, how can we judge? Her net income is not dissimilar to that of my DD who is also bringing up two children without financial assistance from the father. Admittedly she doesn't live in London, but she has the mortgage and council tax to pay and has to run a car for work. She manages OK and the girls are well fed and cared for - she does have savings but I've no idea how much.

Yes, I'll stick my neck out - I do think it's credible.

I am puzzled by the tone of your post, Sel. I make no bones about my opinion of the DM, which is not a criticism of people who choose to read it. And, yes, I am accusing the girl of lying, or else she is the world's most wonderful manager. Nobody has yet explained how she lives on £516 a month. Do you find that credible?

It would seem that we choose our papers for many different reasons. The main paper that we take is the Sunday Times and I am not interested in its politics, but chose it for the culture section, the excellent book reviews and above all else the Spectrum feature each week which focuses on photography.

We also receive Private Eye.

My brother and his wife read the DM and are, I would say, pretty prejudiced in their outlook - there are many subjects we keep well off by mutual agreement. They did have a problem with the many projects that I worked on with Gypsies and Travellers!

Greatnan do you know the facts simply don't add up? I don't. I looked at Closer online, the source of this story and it seems to me they have printed this, lapping up everything this silly girl said. Goodness knows who found whom.

And Greatnan to quote "I was studiously avoiding any hint of political allegiance, as I don't think it is necessarily related to the choice of newspaper" - your OP being headed "A typical DM story" is almost laughable. Maybe you have the inside facts that have evaded Closer and the DM? Or, are you calling the girl in question a liar?

I don't think it is unreasonable to expect a newspaper to check the facts of a story - and these facts simply don't add up.
It was Sel who talked about people getting their knickers in a right/left twist. I was studiously avoiding any hint of political allegiance, as I don't think it is necessarily related to the choice of newspaper.

Well said Ana!!

Who's trying to turn it into a left/right argument? Presumably the figures are the ones given by the woman concerned, as is the information about holidays etc. Should the publications involved have refused to publish the story in case she was lying?

Oops, sorry for duplication...my phone us roo small!!

I have no idea why she did it, almost deliberately provocative. She is very young and appears to be proud of saving. The children look happy and well cared for but I question the role model they are being exposed to. I looked online , the comments reflect the ones I heard from working parents on the radio.

The main thrust of your argument seems to concern the maths , in croydon, a new 2 bed flat would be approx a quarter of a million. Paying for that via a mortgage would account for the bulk of the average take home pay. Housing costs, which you have taken out are colossal and beyond many who have studied and work hard. If you can say these facts as reported are incorrect, then, fair enough but if they are correct then it's completely right to draw attention to them.

As a parent, how do you encourage your children to work hard at school etc if, in fact, you will do a great deal better by leaving school at 16 with zero exams , get pregnant and have no intention of working?

Ana, we are asking people to look at the 'facts' of the story, which are simply not credible. Does anybody really believe that a mother and two children could live on £516 a month? Perhaps the £250 a month she is supposed to 'save' pays for household repairs, clothing, insurance, electricity, transport, etc. etc. It beggars belief that it is available to spend on luxury goods and holidays.
We are simply asking DM readers to use their common sense. It is not a question of one's political allegiances however much anyone tries to turn it into a right/left argument. We are talking about decent journalism.

I have no idea why she did it, almost deliberately provocative. She is very young and appears to be proud of saving. The children look happy and well cared for but I question the role model they are being exposed to. I looked online , the comments reflect the ones I heard from working parents on the radio.

The main thrust of your argument seems to concern the maths , in croydon, a new 2 bed flat would be approx a quarter of a million. Paying for that via a mortgage would account for the bulk of the average take home pay. Housing costs, which you have taken out are colossal and beyond many who have studied and work hard. If you can say these facts as reported are incorrect, then, fair enough but if they are correct then it's completely right to draw attention to them.

As a parent, how do you encourage your children to work hard at school etc if, in fact, you will do a great deal better by leaving school at 16 with zero exams , get pregnant and have no intention of working?

It's a moot point greatnan though. If ANY ardent supported of a particular paper is happy to embrace the philosophy of their chosen paper then how can it be an insult? If, fir example, I said 'thank you for proving the point about Guardian readers' or 'readers of Private Eye' then would that be an insult? As a reader of PI myself I'd certainly not take it as an insult...even if such was the intent.

I think the insult is only in the eye of the independent observer

No pun intended incidentally.

Why should jodi be frustrated? Surely not everyone can be expected to agree with the general consensus?

Jodi - not a good post. We try to avoid personal insults. But I do understand your frustration.

Sel, I can see that it looks stupid of this girl to publicise her story, but she could be hoping to get some kind of 'celebrity' work, like the girls in The Only Way is Essex, and no doubt she got a good fee from Closer magazine.
I am highly suspicious - she could be in a well paid job - we only know what we have been told.
The response was predictable and makes me rather sad.

janthea thank you for proving the point about DM readers!!!