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Originally Posted by Chris
Let's not forget in all of this that IDS did not stand up and make a claim about anything. He was ambushed by someone who was pretty soon afterwards discovered to be lying.
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Well he is the one who is advocating this new rate. It doesn't matter if the person asking if IDS could live on £53 a week is lying about how much he personally lives on as he isn't the one advocating that people do it.
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A fairer way of looking at it would be to see IDS affirming he would be able to cope on equal terms with the man in question (terms which, as we now know, are a little less straitened than £53). Or, better still, you could take his words at naked face value. Yes, you *could* live on £53 for a week, if you *had* to, because if you *had* to, then you would simply prioritise what you need to stay alive and buy that first. Everything else, even some of the things you might class as 'essential' such as internet access, become extras that you may or may not be able to afford.
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But he is not arguing people should live on £53 a week plus additional cash on the side. He is saying £53 a week excluding other benefits that do not include energy or heating costs (as far as I am aware).