Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

And to top it all off, those who had a free university education along with grants, Housing Benefit etc then pulled the ladder up for those coming after them.

---------- Post added at 19:38 ---------- Previous post was at 19:35 ----------

Well, it wasn't the individuals who did this, it was the Government. There again, it could be argued that it was many of these people who voted for the Governments that did these things.

Edit: I've just been reading that Thatcher made no mention of privatisation in her first manifesto.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

How many students actually pay off their loans? In effect they are still mostly free.


The privatisation of British Gas didn't happen until 1986. So nothing to do with a 1979 manifesto.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Points of information

A) in 1970 600,000 attended University, now it is 2.4 million - four times as many

B) Housing Benefit was introduced in 1982, and £22 billion was spent on it last year, which is double the amount spent in the early 2000s, and 4 million people receive it - how is this "pulling up the ladder"?

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Due to current health issues progressing I have had to give up looking for a new job and instead am faced with claiming Universal Credit, council tax benefit and ESA along with trying to get my PIP changed to the higher tier.

What a hell of a process for it all.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Due to wife being made redundant, as I was already claiming ESA and PIP, meant that Universal credit has to be made jointly so I had to apply for it as well so my ESA and PIP is just deducted from UC, same with carers allowance too. It really is hell. It has taken 11 weeks so far and they don't really help you either. I pity anyone that has to go through this process.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Same 2ith me, wife has to be part of the claim and as she is a student on 10 hours a week she actually has to visit the job centre every week as well as applying for jobs still for her commitments.

I mean how ridiculous. ESA getting deducted from UC, is just a joke. What help is that really....

We got lucky the woman that helped us get the paperwork sorted helped us a lot.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Sorry to hear that you have had to give up work Stephen.

As for the process its definitely pretty stressful as the process of filling the form in and then going through the processes of the system can make anybody stressful IMO.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Cheers Den. Well I got made redundant in May, but but consultant in the renal dept. Has told me not to start a new job now as I'll be on dialysis within a few month as needing a kidney transplant.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

If your wife can claim carers allowance depending on what benefits you're on now, then she would be exempt from those commitments. And less chance of sanctions etc too.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Yes, the irony is that some won't pay all or even any student loan back.

When was the first Tory privatisation?

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Not a expert on Dialysis but from what my late uncle had to do was he had to go to dialysis three times a week and was there for 4 hours at a time but that was a while back and l don't know if it has changed since then.

Have they put you on the kidney transplant list yet?.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

A) Yes, the amount of people now going to university has expanded enormously, but the extra funding wasn't provided for this. I actually think that there are now too many going to university as it lessens the value of a degree.

B) The baby boomers paid no tuition fees, received a maintenance grant, could claim help for travel, books etc. In addition, they could claim Housing Benefit towards their rent and could claim benefits as unemployed during the holidays.

Now that the baby boomers have got their free degrees and have achieved positions of power, they have stopped the above for most students and implemented tax cuts.

---------- Post added at 20:50 ---------- Previous post was at 20:45 ----------

Yes, also, if Stephen gets the standard or enhanced care of the daily living component of PIP, his wife could possibly get Carers Allowance. Every penny of this would be deducted from UC, but claiming it attracts an extra top up called the Carers Element.

---------- Post added at 20:55 ---------- Previous post was at 20:50 ----------

I'm sorry to hear this too Stephen, it's a stressful and worrying time. Contribution Based ESA (Now referred to as 'New Style ESA') is indeed taken off UC penny for penny.

If you look at the post above, your wife might be able to claim Carers Allowance though, but there are limits as to how many hours she can study and claim this benefit. In addition, she would have to be caring for you for at least 35 hours a week.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

If the increase in places isn't being funded, where are they getting all the money to build new and additional premises? It's covered by tuition fees.

Don't remember housing benefit being available or help for travel and books, and benefits were only available during the long summer break(I asked at the time).

To make things simpler perhaps there should be a single working-age benefit?:rolleyes: As suggested by the Government/DWP in 2009. Perhaps it could be called Universal Credit. The ESA is included in the UC payments, not deducted from anywhere.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Exactly, but How much of these loans to pay the fees will have to be written off?

Yep, students could claim Housing Benefit, how much depended on their level of grant, if they had a part time job, if their parents paid a deed of covenant etc.

In the summer, Christmas and Easter holidays, students could claim Unemployment Benefit/Supplementary Benefit/Income Support and receive more help towards their rent during these periods.

There were also extra things available, such as travel to visit parents if the student lived away, extra money for disability, maturity etc.

Edit: It's worth noting that certain groups of students can still claim social security benefits whilst a student eg lone parents, the disabled etc.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Lot of ifs there for claiming HB. As I said, at the time I tried to get benefits for Xmas and Easter and was told "no".