Sunak due to announce new financial measures, at 11am today.

raking*

LizzieDrip

^They allow things to get bad for people so they can then make things better. It’s like being in an abusive relationship isn’t it^

Exactly MayBe!!! Johnson is a narcissistic, controlling, gaslighting bully. This government is abusing its people; grinding us down then throwing us a crumb and ‘demanding’ that we’re grateful! Definitely the MO of an abusive relationship

Couldn't have said it better

Their employers were getting it.

Germanshepherdsmum

Some people are never satisfied. They complain nothing’s being done. They complain when something is done.

No, they complain (because they realise) that there was never any need for us to have been in the situation we are in in the first place, with a competent government and prime minister.

Germanshepherdsmum

Their employers were getting it.

GSM could you explain please?
My DS worked throughout the pandemic for the civil service. My DD worked as a teacher. Both wfh. Are you saying their employers were getting furlough for them?

vegansrock

I have a barrister friend who received several payments of £7000 from the self employed grant as he couldn’t work during the pandemic. He blew it all on buying antiques.

My son’s a barrister. He worked throughout the pandemic. He worked from home. He did trials from home by video. Not jury trials, but trials where only a judge/judges make a judgment. He didn’t take a penny from the government but worked all through. I suspect any barristers not working would be criminal barristers or barristers who work in courts with a jury, but many barristers simply worked from home. Very successfully.

At the end of the day Sunak did what he had to do, he simply had to give a hand out. £15bn is peanuts compared with that spent on Brexit and Covid, The BoE will just print some more money to cover it.

Windfall tax will maybe contribute some but companies have a habit of getting out of taxation.

I can't speak for the civil service, but as a retired lawyer I have contacts with those still working. Despite the fact that some admin staff couldn't do their jobs from home, my son's firm for instance decided it would be morally wrong to make any claims. A lot of lawyers actually did remarkably well during the pandemic and had profits aplenty to pay those who couldn't wfh. But nevertheless there were those who took the money as well as the profits.

* maddyone* yes he’s a criminal barrister so didn’t work during the period when there weren’t any jury trials. Now he’s got work stacking up.

Even criminal barristers would have been called on for advice and opinions when the criminal courts weren't sitting.

Rameses

Germanshepherdsmum

Some people are never satisfied. They complain nothing’s being done. They complain when something is done.

No, they complain (because they realise) that there was never any need for us to have been in the situation we are in in the first place, with a competent government and prime minister.

How exactly could any UK government have prevented the current global problems which are affecting us? Food shortages and prices? Fuel prices? Pray tell.

LizzieDrip

^A lot of people will blow a cash payment on booze, cigarettes etc^

What an incredibly patronising statement Urmstongran.

Maybe so, but probably true. No-one is saying everyone will do this, but 'a lot of people' is probably accurate. Unless you have proof it is not true you cannot argue with this statement. Some people cannot manage money and spend it as soon as it comes their way. It's no good pretending otherwise.

And some people have very different priorities. I've lost count of the number of people I've seen on tv who say how little money they have to pay the bills whilst smoking a fag. I know it's very difficult to give up, having done it myself a long while ago, but whilst they might stop you feeling so hungry they're an expensive way of doing so and do nothing to help you or your family. I really have no sympathy for those who prioritise fags. Nowadays they're an expensive 'luxury'.

At £10 a packet no-one short of money should even be considering smoking! If they smoked 20 a day that would be £70 a week. 10 a day would be £35 a week, that's over £150 a month. Just for 10 smokes a day. No-one on benefits or low wages could possibly afford that and they certainly couldn't complain about their energy bills.

Gosh. I wonder what tv programs you watch GSM. I haven't seen anyone smoking while talking about their life on tv for about 15 years.

germanshepherdsmum yes he did have some zoom work, but nothing like his previous work consequently he received payments amounting to several thousand £ under the self employment package offered. I’m not making this up - I only mentioned it as a foil to the poster who claimed the poor would blow all their extra benefits on booze and fags - it’s not just the poor who spend their taxpayers payouts on things not everyone would approve of.

Unless you have proof it is not true you cannot argue with this statement

I beg to differ Chestnut. Unless there is evidence to show that the statement is true, I can freely argue with it. The poster provided no evidence to support the statement, therefore I disagree with her opinion.

Germanshepherdsmum

Rameses

Germanshepherdsmum

Some people are never satisfied. They complain nothing’s being done. They complain when something is done.

No, they complain (because they realise) that there was never any need for us to have been in the situation we are in in the first place, with a competent government and prime minister.

How exactly could any UK government have prevented the current global problems which are affecting us? Food shortages and prices? Fuel prices? Pray tell.

And how could any UK government have prevented the global financial crisis that struck towards the end of Labour's last period in Government? Yet the Tories and the right-wing media still regularly berate Labour for it!

The £700 which I will receive and is not means-tested will go into my bank account and be used to pay for food, fuel, gas and electricity will be very welcome.

For the way it was handled ‘Oldnproud’.

Germanshepherdsmum

For the way it was handled ‘Oldnproud’.

Just like the criticism of the current Government, then - for the way it has handled things.

Germanshepherdsmum

For the way it was handled ‘Oldnproud’.

At the time, many people (including foreign observers) praised Gordon Brown for the way the crisis was handled.

growstuff

Germanshepherdsmum

For the way it was handled ‘Oldnproud’.

At the time, many people (including foreign observers) praised Gordon Brown for the way the crisis was handled.

Gordon Brown wasn’t flaky either, unlike some.

Chestnut

LizzieDrip

A lot of people will blow a cash payment on booze, cigarettes etc

What an incredibly patronising statement Urmstongran.

Maybe so, but probably true. No-one is saying everyone will do this, but 'a lot of people' is probably accurate. Unless you have proof it is not true you cannot argue with this statement. Some people cannot manage money and spend it as soon as it comes their way. It's no good pretending otherwise.

This is "othering" by the anti-democratic. The poor must be feckless, incompetent and inclined to poor decision making. In this case, it seems to be by the far-right. We've seen it done in the past where people, once grouped in this way, have been driven out or treated as Communist China treats the Uyghurs or Germany treated the Jews, Communists, etc. In these countries, the gullible public followed the propaganda, thus making the dreadful decisions of government, easier. I have to believe that this is not deliberate, but then it wasn't in other cases, was it?

AGAA4

Germanshepherdsmum

Their employers were getting it.

GSM could you explain please?
My DS worked throughout the pandemic for the civil service. My DD worked as a teacher. Both wfh. Are you saying their employers were getting furlough for them?

The Civil Service did not get paid for anybody working at home. People working at home were working, so were paid as normal.