BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Just a (little) thread to ask questions,share views,experiences,offer advice From "benefit street/Britian to "benefit bashing" to friendly benefit advice.

If you think folk on benefits are working the system and have become experts at it then share your view.
Maybe you think CH4 should release a tax avoidance crescent series ;) .
Have you had a pleasant experience or been knocked off benefits and wish to share that experience,then please do so.

Remember-Your taxes DON'T pay for welfare benefits plus the safety net that is welfare state is there to catch anyone who falls on hard times, including you.
So try and be nice :D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Do you mean tax avoidance or just following HM Revenue and Customs rules when completing your tax return

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

What views, experience and advice are you looking for/offering?:confused:

We have plenty of very good threads already covering the subjects concerning benefits & scroungers.:)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I am all for benefits being a helping hand...a safety net, but if am against people being on them for a lifetime.
I really do feel,that being on benefits traps the poor, and the vulnerable. It takes away their dignity, self esteem and self reliance.
I find the Channel 4 program unhelpful, they sensationalise what is a very lamentable situation.....but then if the didn't do that there would be nothing worth watching.
This program, like Jeremy Kyle is toxic TV.

As for the possibility of a program about tax avoiders - well, it is legal to avoid taxes.....and businesses are in business to make money, so of course if there is a chance for them to minimise their outgoings they will take it.
The real problem is that the government know of the loopholes that these companies exploit.
Loopholes that are not available to the likes of you and me.
If the government closed these loopholes, made the likes of Google, Starbucks, Amazon et al pay their rightful dues then there would be enough in the pot to fund everything and sort out the flood defences as well.
And it isn't just this government that are at fault - these loopholes have been used for a long time.....no government, of any colour have had the cojones to do the decent thing.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

In a nutshell, n those who wear Red or Blue rosettes n tub thump fer there respective parties are too damn stupid to see this.:rolleyes:

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Hmmmmm...do you have an opinion?


Hmmmmmmm..

Revealed: how much you pay towards benefit bill - Telegraph

this would seem to disagree with your statement, care to elaborate and change my mind?

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Thank you Guinness for posting the link to that article.
It is most enlightening.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Defining a forum was silly ;),The views I'm looking for will be those to some of the questions i have,for example,Is bringing in minimum wages pointless when their are no maximum payment restrictions for rent, gas, electricity?. With current government policies, more people are going to be pushed out of employment due to apparently uncontrollable rising costs. Resulting in a bigger burden on the welfare state.
Have benefits have become just a way of life?
Is the Royal Family is a net loss to the state rather than an income generator? :D

The views I'll be offering will probably be from my pointless,pot stirring collection :Probably wont be anything that has not been known/said previously but time will tell :)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I see far too much of this 'scrounger' hating.I'd suspect that there comes a point where people have been unemployed for so long that they become institutionalised by the benefits trap. The disparity between benefit provision and the rising cost of living means that the longer you're on benefits the more defensively you have to manage your finances and your lifestyle as a whole. It comes to the point where you're not trying to make ends meet this month, but you're trying to make ends meet for last month. Life becomes a battle against drowning, and swimming back to shore becomes less possible.

Maybe what I should of said is none of your hard earned taxes pay for any welfare benefits.Its paid entirely from NI contributions. The only people getting 'benefits' from the tax you pay are MPs.:D I think MPs should be means tested,and this is where cuts should be made,before they get their heating (and everything else) paid for while 80yr old Betty at No4 is too scared to put the heating on.

BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I don't see enough scrounger hating, I have no problem with genuine claimants but scroungers? No use to man nor beast.
I realise your heart is in the right place, you are obviously a caring sort of person, however you aren't saying anything that hasn't been said elsewhere.
:o

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Those who are on benefits pay neither income tax or NI contributions.
The only taxes they pay rely entirely on how they spend their money.
And in my post to this thread I have said that benefits trap people into the kind of lifestyle that is unhealthy.
This was done by a government that knew what it was doing....it was making a section of the electorate subservient.....because they needed the financial help to survive.(it gave that political party a 'hold' over them)
But I would say that survival is a long way from living.....and it it what those who are on a basic pension do - they survive, because it doesn't give enough money to live.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

However you cut it......those who are in work pay for those who are out of work(for whatever reason).
Using the term 'scrounger' is like using the term 'racist'.....it is calculated to stifle discussion.
We have been brainwashed to think in politically correct ways and to use terms that will not offend.
What would you call those people who claim benefits when they are perfectly capable of work? Who just want an easy life? Who want their fags and tattoos paid for by those of us who have worked all of our lives?
What would you call those people who draw benefits and work in the black economy?
I'm not being fly, I would genuinely like to know.

It is these people who draw benefits when they do not need them who are really depriving the needy, the vulnerable...of a service that they actually need. It is STEALING!

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

You,Margaret,fly,Never :D

As you know apart from benefits taxes pay for many, many things including schools, hospitals, bin collections, roads, the legal system, the royal family, streetlights, the military and right now, for massive corporations like Tesco to get free labor when they should be actually employing people who need jobs.

As for folk on benefits there will always be some that will abuse the system (Just go to any supermarket car park , watch the many blue badge holders walking backs to their cars loaded down with shopping) for so many it's a way of life .And for them "scroungers" or "criminals" are pleasant words .(Not saying for one moment that it is(I know you like think outside the box ;)),but) If your objection is based around a perception that people on benefits are living a life of luxury,I disagree.:hidewall:

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

TMLW-too many long words ;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Is there a point to putting an abbreviation and explaining it in the same sentence? (unless of course you were asked to explain it), surely it's a bigger sin than Margaret's use of so called long words in a post that made far more common sense with everyday terms than has so far resulted from this thread.
:confused:

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

No, I haven't said that.
But it is strange when those on benefits can have children , when those who are in work have to stop and consider whether they can actually afford to have another child.
It is also strange to see folk who I know to be on benefits in Costa coffee having breakfast.
This isn't to say they are not entitled to spend their money on what they want, but if they were in such dire financial straits, that seems to be a bit extravagant.

I know that taxes pay for lots of things(like the salaries of those who run this county)...... Those who are working pay taxes..... Usually through PAYE......but those on benefits do not.
So those who are not working are being funded by those who are, and are paying tax......I pay tax on my pension, throughout my working life I contributed to the wealth and fabric of this country. Those who could work but don't( because they can get more on benefits than they can by working) contribute nothing.....they just subtract.....from society, from their self worth, and this is what is wrong.
Benefits should never be worth more than a wage, and living on benefits should never be a lifestyle choice.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I'm sorry that you consider my post has too many long words.
I wrote it in my usual language.....to illustrate my opinions.
I will, in future try to use Sun language....short words short sentences......those aimed at people with lesser language skills(and this is not calculated to offend those who read The Sun).

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Which long words didn't you understand?
I can arrange classes to enlighten you :)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

No,that was one from my pointless selection :o

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Congratulations, you have stayed with the theme you started in your first post.:rofl38:

Why, oh, why, ask important questions then complain because you don't understand the answer or the language it is submitted in?

Now, if Margaret doesn't mind, I'll get back to reading my back issues of the Sun, there is an important article on page 3 in one of them where Janice (age 19 from Blackburn) tells us of the benefits of having silicone implants inserted by the NHS.
http://www.messentools.com/images/em...om-Sex-001.gif

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Less, go right ahead......I know from your responses that my posts are understood by you....and that your motive for reading the Sun is not to widen your education, but for something else entirely different. :D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I'm trying to "understand",''God loves a trier'' :D

Nobody on here is attacking decent folk who have hit hard times and find it difficult to get back into work. Those people have yours/my support 100%, and always will.

The "scroungers",freeloaders are the ones we are upset about,The ones that don't want to work and will find every excuse under the sun ;) not to work and to maintain their life on benefits.
Have they written a cookbook on how to avoid work and how to milk the system?,you tell me :D

Margaret is the sort of person that we as a society should be doing FAR more to help.

Close????

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I actually would prefer not to have help.
It damages my independence...and anyone who knows me will tell you that I am fiercely independent.
I trust myself. I can rely on myself. I have planned my retirement with care......because I have seen those who haven't been able to do that and it is a miserable time if you have no money.
I have been fortunate in my life to be blessed with a working life which was long and had few interruptions(the only time I have ever been on the dole was during the miners strike and the three day week - we worked one week and played the next...the dole had to be claimed to get your stamps put on).
This isn't to say that I do not have empathy for those who find themselves(through no fault of their own) in tough financial times.

What grieves me is to hear people say that it doesn't pay them to go to work...that they would lose benefits...that it wouldn't be worth their while.
What grieves me is that some peole will find themsleves on benefits and it becomes easier than getting out of bed and going out to get the bus on a cold morning and putting in a days graft.
Work isn't just about earning a living, it is about being part of the fabric of society. It is about having aspirations,bettering yourself.
Life must be an awful burden if you have no esteem, no self worth, no aspirations.

I have worked at jobs I didn't much like - because they paid the bills.
I have got up and walked to Blackburn through snow because there were no buses...my job was important to me.
This is called a work ethic - and it is what is missing from the lives of many people today.

I have been poor, I have learned how to budget, I have learned that when the job situation isn't rosy you don't go into a debt that you cannot afford.

I can make do and mend, in short I know how to manage my money when there isn't much of it to spare.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Thought you were reading the motoring section Less, isn't that clip about the Nissan Pathfinders independent suspension? ;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Nah, it was their classic car section The Austin Princess, their suspension was far superior!




:D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

lol the sun is the only newspaper that if used as loo roll in an emergencey would leave behind more crap on your arse than what you started out with

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I had to sign on 25 years ago.

The small company I was working for at the time went bankrupt (none of the peons like me saw it coming). They owed me about three thousand in salary, holiday pay and unpaid expenses. There was (possibly still is) a government fund that covers expenses and holiday pay and some salary, but to get it you needed to sign on.

I was treated with disdain and indifference by the staff at the Job Centre (as it was back then, I think). "Fill these out and sign them." as a wad of forms was quite literally thrown at me. I didn't look at them. I explained my situation, and finished with "I don't want to sign on, don't want the money, it's a waste of my time and yours. I'll be in a new job within a month. If I don't do it, I won't get the money I'm owed for work I've already done."

The attitude changed, I got help filling in the one form I needed, and three weeks later I was in a new job. In the meantime I got a surprisingly big cheque each week until I signed off. I seem to recall it was deferred by a week or two, so there was a bit of a wait for the first, and I still got one, possibly two, after signing off.

Fast forward nine months and I get a letter stating that I'd been overpaid by £100 but because it was an administrative mistake and not fraud, they would not be seeking to recover the amount.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

No-one answered your questions Margaret - I have put my answers in red. Hopefully not TMLW for the thread-starter - I could crop the "s" to make the second answer have just 5 letters if that's more acceptable - or should that be better... ;):D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Perhaps the word your looking for is apt?

Not a long word and not used as often in everyday conversation by some folk so it may cause complications.

http://th06.deviantart.net/fs11/PRE/...Powerpoint.jpg

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Thanks Less, took me 10 mins to scroll past post 20. ;);):D:D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Thought them was meant for your Carlos fandango doggies danglies "Smart phones" ( but just quite how a phone can be considered smart is beyond me, what's it do? Dress in saville row clobber or kicks everyones arse at the local boozer pub quiz?) ;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Well, someone in Accy thinks it's a good idea to pit one persons 'smartphone' against his neighbours!


http://www.accringtonweb.com/forum/n...eply&p=1092209

What a no brainer that must be?



:)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

i know someone who has been sanctioned which is kicked off benefits or had tehir benefits stopped for 12 weeks because they had to spend time looking for a new home because of the bedroom tax. As they were busy for a week finding a property and moving while trying to sort small children out with school and everything else children need they were deemed not looking for work or putting enough effort into looking for work.

basically because they spent a few days sorting their immidiate personal issues out such as putting a roof over their kids heads they got labled dossers and sanctioned despite showing eagerness to work or seek work on teh previous weeks

social will claim there are not targets for removing peoples benefits but many who work for the system say otherwise

if its not written down its not an official policey but staff at job centers are been given performance warnings for not kicking enough people off benefits

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

As fitting as those words maybe for a few:D,I think the Politicians need you to think that these people you mention are "cheats,lazy" and undeserving so they can get away with slashing welfare state,journalists also need you to believe this so they can continue to print tosh.I’d be more worried about what the rich and powerful are doing.
Poverty isn't good for anyone (Apart from the economic elite, who need
people willing to polish the parquet for a pittance).Poverty affects the health, education and prospects of the people caught in its trap. It breeds resentment and apathy.
Question time again:
Do you want a society where everybody is empowered to contribute, where people value their communities and incentives to commit crime and behave antisocially are greatly reduced? Or do you want to punish the poor, the disabled and the downright unlucky because, eewww poor people are so last century? ;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

A sweeping statement that you manage to contradict all by yourself.



The rest of the post wasn't as good.:(

By the way parquet, do you mean lino? OLWTM;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

A lot of the people who "benefit bash" don't stop to think that they are also getting benefits - child benefit? Working tax credits? Even single people getting their 25% council tax reduction are benefiting, so what next? We attack all single people now?

One thing is for certain - while we argue constantly among ourselves on sites like this the people folk elected are sleeping soundly in their beds :(

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I agree that poverty isn't good for anyone...but there has been too much made of 'What's the government doing about it?'
There is too much reliance on other agencies, when people should take some responsibility for themselves.
With rights, go responsibilities but it appears that people do not want to be responsible for themselves.

And those who abuse the welfare system are cheats, and lazy.

Politicians do not control my thoughts. I have not lost the power of critical thinking, of observation of those who live in and around me.

If someone who is rich is looking for someone who will polish his/her parquet flooring...they are unlikely to get a Brit to do it...it is much more likely that someone from the Eastern Bloc, who actually wants to work will do it for them.


As to your last question - well, what do you think the answer would be?
To be empowered you need to want to contribute.
Reducing crime and tackling anti-social behaviour is not as simple as you would have us believe....it is a multi-faceted problem which needs a multi-faceted response.
As for poor people being so last century - the poor will always be with us...and poverty today isn't like the poverty of the last century...todays poverty is the poverty of ideals,aspirations and ethics......with a mobile phone in a tattooed hand

My answer is - You are asking far too many questions!

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

There is a difference. The difference is if you are working then you are contributing to the general wealth of the country, and these so called benefits is the government taking with one hand and giving back with the other.
If you are working you will be paying taxes.......if you are not working then you are not only NOT paying tax...you are not contributing to the wealth of the country.

I do not consider my pension to be a benefit because I worked all my life to earn it. I even paid extra in to the system to get a pension uplift.

It isn't benefit bashing, it is being realistic about the facts that some people seem to have the ability to milk the system...to have a better standard of living than some who are working.
This doesn't mean all those on benefits are not deserving...just that some aren't.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I'm on benefits so I'm not 'benefit bashing', just ill thought out post bashing.:)



If you do a search of the site you will find a thread about the so called bedroom tax, single people are already being attacked.:(

Whom is arguing? you are attempting to make sense of our corrupt world and failing...


...miserably, unfortunately.:o

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

What we are doing is called discussion, it isn't an argument.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Sorry Less, you got the bit about arguing in ahead of me.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

You have people living in you? Any room for a little one? I'll only need one bedroom or whatever your equivalent is.
:D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

No Less...not any more...I have cast out the devil :D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Where are you getting the evidence for these sweeping statements? The Beano?

Those of us who 'benefit bash' do not 'bash' those in real need. They bash fraudsters like this one...

£94k benefits cheat evicted from Hyndburn home (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Thieves, like the cretin above, fuel the fires for threads titled 'benefits hmmmm'. They are a minority, and they are invariably caught because of their innate stupidity and their greed for more gravy.

Welfare benefits are a necessity for some people, and the number in need of them is growing exponentially, thanks to medicine and health awareness allowing us to live longer, and, bankers, government and technological advance destroying jobs.

We are throwing billions in foreign aid to spacefaring nations whilst our own are left without power and homes because it rains hard. We cut aid to our own infirm and sick whilst affording the multi national super corporations tax loopholes.

I'm guessing from the posts I've seen on this forum in numerous threads over the years, that everyone knows this.....

So what is your point?

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Guinness, I think I get his point.
He is hoping to stimulate debate on a subject which polarises opinion.
I know, I know...we have had it all before.

Maybe the program about the Birmingham street has brought it to the fore......but media always portray the worst side of anything...they sensationalise to make the viewing figures worth it for the advertisers to invest money.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Yes -"apt" is definitely more...apt! :D

Odd but that large smiley has a look of me :eek:

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

No Dianne....you are much prettier!

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Lol! I have recently been likened to a greek goddess! :eek::D

(Seriously! But referring to a photo of me in fancy dress back in 1979!)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

And that's bad ????

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Perhaps you should mention the possible benefits hmmmm?
:)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I'm sure Dianne doesn't need me to tell her the benefits of being a Greek Goddess! :)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

The odd glass of nectar, not bad and I must admit to being fond of Ambrosia (creamed rice of course!) Yes, those are benefits Mmmmm! ;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

and of course you must not forget the lesser mortals worship.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Perhaps there should be a rule that anyone convicted of cheating the benefit system should thereafter be disqualified from receiving any further benefits.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Nice thought but unworkable, they've got rights!

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Yes, I was going to say that too.
Everyone has rights, but no-one seesm to step up to the plate of responsibility.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

The cost of fraud is dwarfed by the surplus from unclaimed benefits from folk who are entitled but don't claim,.“Errors” cost more than fraudsters. how much does locking them up cost £35k on average per yr? :rolleyes: (I'm not saying they should get a slapped wrist)
The Government announced that benefit cheats will now be dealt with as harshly as fraudulent bankers :eek:...I'm not sure giving them Knighthoods is the right way to go :)
Having watched Benefits Street,It's not much different to Sesame Street I watched as a child,I mean they've Both have a big bird, a bloke living out of a bin and people trying to learn the alphabet.
David Cameron has said that people in the UK will have to learn to speak a usable standard of English or face losing their benefits.
David Cameron's 'Earn or learn' benefit crackdown: Go to college, get a job or lose handouts | Mail Online
How many in Accy alone are up the creek without a paddle :D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Now that was a shame, I was about to put a like on this post, for it's humour, I hesitated and googled it on the web instead:-

https://www.google.com/search?q=Havi...=t&channel=rcs

It comes up on several sites all dated before your post.

Please don't plagiarise, if you read something elsewhere worthy of putting on site the least you can do is put a link to where you found your quote.
If the original author sees you have used their work, both you and the site could be in big trouble.
:(:o:p;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

The site I used wasn't exactly child friendly,thought I'd incorporate into a little paragraph an use it here(it's only cheap
humour anyway) I'll bare your advice in mind tho ;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Nudity is a 'no no' on here - we are a family forum ;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Tax dodging and benefit grabbing: the scale of the problems
Attachment 37817

Tax dodging and benefit grabbing: the scale of the problems | Full Fact ;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Did you read that? It tells you the picture is nonsense

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Yes,I didn't say the figures were 100% solid.
Like most figures released the have a smell of manure.
Has anyone any links to figures relating to the fraud Vs unclaimed benefits that are not nonsense??

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

You are of course correct, you didn't say the figures were solid in fact you did a classic C'mon copy and paste without checking the contents or making any real comment.


I suspect you are trying too hard, you came on site talking about what you know something about, wandering through abandoned buildings.
People showed an interest so now you are trying to impress with your threads, it doesn't seem to be working. :o
May I suggest you go back to what you know and slowly get used to the site?
That way you will be in a position to expand your thoughts in a worthwhile manner.:)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I actually got pulled up by another member about starting threads an not putting my own thoughts across too,(maybe wrongly) I like to study others thoughts before I cherp up.Sometimes I just like a comment because they're saying similar to what I think.
I maybe trying too hard but it certainly isn't to impress.
May I suggest that if the grand wizard doesn't like my threads rather than ripping bits out of them he takes the option of going on a different one ;)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Less, I was going to say much the same thing about the cut and paste stuff -great minds and all that.

I think Accyexplorer is still finding his feet on the forum...he has not been here long.
Now, I would rather have a hundred of Accyexplorer (trying too hard or not) than the recent new memebers we have had ...bible bashers, tub thumpers,misanthropes(sorry another long word) and those who join because they seem to like the site, but then go about telling us what a shower of fisons we all are and how the site could be better if we did things their way( go and start up your own site if you feel like that).

New members sometimes take a little time to get used to us...and we might take a while to get used to them...but when they start out like Accyexplorer has done...and contribute to more than one thread, have more than one interest, they are usually set on the right road.

Accyexplorer provoked a discussion, it may be one that we have had before, but this was in a response to a TV portrayal of a thorny subject.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

No they aren't wrong, if we all just copy and paste then AccyWeb becomes nothing but an extension of google.

The site needs peoples own comments not what the WWW says.


Rather than study perhaps you would improve if you think?:)

Good, because it isn't working.;)

Suggest away, but I'll continue to do what I do, not because I want you to stop posting, but because I want your posts to improve.:)

By the way my user name on here is Less not the Grand Wizard, bear that in mind for the future please.:D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I wholeheartedly agree with you Margaret, I just think he/she can improve by using a little bit of forethought.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

if you owe the tax man £100 they will threaten you with court action

if you owe the tax man £100 million they will take you to lunch and beg you to pay as much as you feel like paying

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Accyman that is what is wrong with this country...the small flies(you and me) are caught, but the big flies break through and escape.
I would think far more of the party which steps in and closes the loopholes that multi nationals make use of.
If they paid what they truly owed, then there would be enough money in the pot to deliver on health and welfare...and probably a bit left over.
But, you cannot blame the big companies....they are allowed to do it legally...and it is no good preaching what is morally right to these big companies...morals will always be trumped by the mighty dollar(or quid in our case).
You only have to look at the expenses scandal to see that this is true( this still gets my dander up!).

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Less, just give him time. We have all made mistakes at some time.....it is what we learn that is important.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

As the accountant of a business your job to to make as much money as possible for your company and pay as little tax as you legally can. You can't blame them for having good business sense. I agree it's wrong they don't pay the amount of tax we expect. If loopholes are closed and they are forced to pay more tax they will only pass that cost onto the customer which is you and me so maybe we shouldn't shout to loud.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

problem is neil its companies like vodaphone that arnt even paying what they are legally required to after they have taken advantage of loopholes

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I'm not sure that that is entirely true. Most companies make a healthy profit anyway..it is just corporate greed.

The reasoning behind not closing the loopholes is the fear that these companies would relocate to somewhere that they could pay less tax...but I am sure that I read somewhere( I read a lot of stuff in online newspapers) that France is taking action against Google and slapping a I million Euro tax bill on them...so if they can do it why can't we?

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Yes..I do know that the answer is that tax avoidance is legal...but it should not be.
If I am taxed on the very small amount of interest my savings account accrues, then those who make shed loads of money should be paying their whack too.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Margaret, if you could avoid paying tax on your income I'm sure you'd want to. I certainly would!

It's legal because it's within the laws- the laws need changing to make major avoidance into evasion.

There's one big coffee house chain which pays no tax because it makes little or no profit.
Why- because it buys its coffee from its sister company on the continent at such inflated prices the UK branch makes no profit, the sister company makes huge profits but in another country which has a much lower tax rate than us.

Now how do you get round that? It's immoral but it's legal.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Gordon......I have always worked for companies and organisations which operate the PAYE system, so tax avoidance hasn't been something which has been available to me.
Yes, I know it is legal...and that is why I said that you cannot blame the companies who avoid paying tax by legal means.
As to the company who make lots of profit in reality, but fiddle the books to make it look like they make a loss.......I would NEVER buy a drink from them.
We all know that if they were making the losses they say they are, they would disappear from their prime locations in city high streets.

Politicians need to address these issues...but we all know they won't because many of them probably use accountants to minimise their own tax bills.

When I first started to draw my pension I was in the 10p tax band...Gordon Brown came along and doubled my tax bill....my little bit of savings accrue very little interest(this money was put aside for my retirement so that there would be a bit of a buffer when bills rose - as they invariably do) but what interest is accrued is taxed......sometimes I wonder if I should have blown the lot on fast cars and slow men :)!

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Margaret, forget the fast cars and slow men!

Just go for fast men, you'll save money on the fast cars and have more fun.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I chose fast cars and slow men purely because I don't want to be caught.
I don't need a man to have fun(now don't be reading anything strange into that comment :))

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Reading anything strange into it? My words but you do rabbit on!



:hidewall:

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No.....Rabbits don't do it for me either Less...especially not bright pink ones...heck you couldn't put that in a pie! :D

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

does anyone know a taxi driver or builder who declares what they really earn?

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I think both taxi drivers and builders are having it hard right now.
And if they employ an accountant who can help them avoid tax is that any different to the likes of a certain search engine and a coffee house with an american currency in its name?
It is legal until some government(in the future) decides to close the loopholes.

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Sorry to take this back to the original post but my tuppence worth is that benefits are very hard to get off, particularly if you have any kind of debt beforehand.

After a few years of flitting in and out of work as a teenager I worked for 15 years solid, paid my dues and tried to live a life. I got a mortgage, took equity out to improve my home etc etc. Then through no fault of my own I was made redundant. For over two and a half years I struggled to get a job. I was applying for up to 40 jobs a week, above my means, within my means and well below my means. I couldn't get in anywhere and did only 4/5 months worth of temporary work in that 2 1/2 year period.

Unemployment means that you don't have money to spare, holidays are gone, repairs to the house fall behind until it seems like everything is broken, food shopping is frugal and uninspiring. BUT, you kind of learn to live within your means and all your debts revert to a minimum £1 a month token payment and nobody can touch you for it. Mortgage assistance can be sought (depending) and the bills just about get paid. IF you have the opportunity to get a job the pay is often so low that it really isn't worth getting out of bed for - its a despairing thought but its true. Potential overtime or bonuses seem to be the only incentive. After a while you really do almost give up on the idea of work and settle your arse down to a life of stable poverty. There are those who have no intention of working at all, but most unemployed do at least dream of getting that job where they can afford to splash out a little.

Eventually I managed to grab an opportunity to set up my own business window cleaning using a government backed loan scheme. It's a big gamble to add to my already bulging debt but it was the only way I could see myself breaking out of the drudgery and trying to make a go of my life. I don't make much at all at the moment but I do make more than I did sitting on benefits and I'm out and about with my self respect back. Hopefully one day I'll acquire enough customers where I can be one of those that goes on holiday or can afford to fill the tank on the car - but until that day I'm happy to just be working :)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

I enjoyed reading your post they're the kind of posts I wanted to see more of before silly season,Thanks.

It's a shame the jobs just aren't out there anymore.
You get 100+ others all applying.Nowadays Job security is if you can get a job if your unfortunate enough to find yourself unemployed.
Thanks again for sharing.:)

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

So benefits are a trap.
They damage self worth, self esteem.
They stamp on aspiration. Work isn't just about money, it is about pride, independence...achievement....being part of a social scene....giving something.


As for the silly season Accyexplorer(and this is said with respect) - it is what happens in threads that get a bit 'heavy'....and you should get used to it becasue if you check back through other serious threads that we have all been part of you will see that to be true....it doesn't take anything away from the thread, rather it underscores the seriousness by providing a contrast.

To Maccawazzagod - I say this to you...very well done. You must be proud of yourself...and so you should be.
I wish you much success and applaud your efforts.

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Know yeh had a crap few years Rob, also know if anyone deserves to make it, YOU DO, Good luck mate.;)

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I did my tax return at the end of last month, very depressing when you see you have paid more tax than the GDP of Wales :rolleyes:

Re: BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Neil, if your had to pay so much you must be coining it in (:D)
You need to seek the services of a good accountant......I'm sure they would get you a discount.

BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Do a quick google, bribe a few bankers and you'll be able to see how much he's managed to tuck away in his off shore Nigerian account!
;)

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Don't mention the Nigerian one it's supposed to be hush hush

BENEFITS hmmmm
 

Not a problem, if ever the authorities catch up with you, I can spam a few folk that have the same name as you and find a sucker to take the blame.

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So you're this Nigerian Prince who's come in to some wad & wants to give me a share if I let you put it through my account? :D

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I've said for years that you have to be very rich or very poor to afford a large family!

3 of my neighbours (in 3-bedroom houses) - couples who've been scamming the benefits system for years & whose children have grown up & moved on have been re-located due to the 'bedroom' tax - hoorah!

Hope they are found fit to work on re-assessment (because they are).

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Well I am from a large family(7 children)...but when my parents were raising us there were no welfare benefits - unless you count free cod liver oil (yeeeuk) and clinic orange juice(yum).
OK they got family allowance for the first child...and we got free school meals(means tested of course)...but other than that there was nothing.

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welfare system that encourages people to scrounge off state

Read more: Benefits Street's White Dee says she will stand as MP | Mail Online :eek:

:hehetable

:hidewall:

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Former Accrington pub landlady overpaid £17k (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Another example of why folks attitude to those on benefits is changing.
(For the record I assume she was trying to pull a fast un...£16k-£27k in the bank an she didn't know....yeah alright,obviously she wasn't that strapped for cash).

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No, it's another example of someone dishonest getting caught, just a shame they only get a slap on the wrist. Then what happens is that people with very simple brains add 2 and 2 together inevitably to exaggerate the figures up to 5 and decide,

'All scroungers are on benefits therefore all those on benefits are scroungers'.

Similar to stupidity making people believe, 'all horses are mammals therefore all mammals are horses'.

I'm sick of doing this in an attempt to enlighten the stupid:-


http://www.martaandreasen.com/wp-con...dead-horse.jpg

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Less....didn't Cashy ever tell you.......You can't put sense where there isn't any
Lord knows we have been trying hard enough and long enough with the chap from the land where men wear skirts.

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Margaret, Five shillings was given for each and every child after the first, and from memory was given in the mothers name.