The Political Thread

[Richmond Clements]

Does 'employed' in this instance include those who are in 'training'?

Yes it most probably does. 

And those who are not employed and also not signing on.

[COMMANDO FORCES]

Great news isn't it!

[Charlie boy]

The Coalition have made it even easier for people to lose their JSA for upwards of 3 months- say for writing down 19 things you did in search for work one week instead of the agreed 20. That would see you lose your JSA for 3 months and during those three months, you're not classified as being unemployed! During these 3 months you can't apply for a crisis loan for bills, food etc because you are not claiming JSA. Then there are the various training places were the Job Centre pays £1 a week of your JSA and the government funded course pays the rest. Again, during this time, you are not classified as being unemployed.
A friend of mine arranged to start a course that would increase his chances of finding work doing what he enjoyed. He was told when he went to sign-on that he had to start a course the following week. When he explained to his advisor he couldn't because of the course he had arranged to go on himself, he was told he would lose his JSA unless he went to the one the Job Centre told him to go to.
Our Coalition government- always a way to fiddle the statistics and kick those who are already down!

[COMMANDO FORCES]

He should complain to his MP!

[Charlie boy]

He probably won't have an MP if Cameron gets his boundary changes in*!
*If Cameron does, he will be the 3rd Conservative PM to play with the boundaries to make it harder for another party to be elected into power.

[COMMANDO FORCES]

Even with the boundary changes he will still have an MP

[Charlie boy]

Even with the boundary changes he will still have an MP

And now the idea of boundary changes confuses me all the more... I thought the recent argument for it was "We have too many MPs- let's cull!"

[COMMANDO FORCES]

Less MP's equates to more people to supposedly work for, so less done per individual. I wonder if they will absorb the wages of the MP's who are binned into their own with a lovely pay increase!

[Jim_Campbell]

Imagine my delight when I discovered that -- should my work ever dry up and leave me unemployed -- my NI contributions don't count for benefit purposes. That's right: I pay tax and NI; I make a net contribution to the UK economy because I'm bringing overseas currencies into the country, and my NI DOESN'T FUCKING COUNT towards benefit.

Bollocks.

Jim

[Richmond Clements]

Imagine my delight when I discovered that -- should my work ever dry up and leave me unemployed -- my NI contributions don't count for benefit purposes. That's right: I pay tax and NI; I make a net contribution to the UK economy because I'm bringing overseas currencies into the country, and my NI DOESN'T FUCKING COUNT towards benefit.

Bollocks.

Jim

God bless the Tories, they're doing a great job, eh?

[Gonk]

Have you heard they've invented a new coffin for Ed?
It's from the head down to shoulders.

It's for people who are dead from the neck up.

[NapalmKev]

In all seriousness I think the current political system is a Fucking shambles. Democracy is largely an illusion considering the three main parties are not only profoundly similar, but also the way they forget their own political stance to 'cozy up' with each other to form coalitions (not just the current crop of twats, Labour would have done the same).

Politicians should be accountable to the General Public, but I fear this isn't (or ever will be) the case!

I won't call for revolution cause the Fuzz have tried doing me for incitement before, so all I will say is...

Cheers 

[Professor Bear]

Just playing devil's advocate here, but perhaps we're being unreasonable in wishing cancer upon David Cameron and a painful hammer related bludgeoning on Nick Clegg just for wanting to line their own pockets at the expense of the rest of the citizenry and the well-being of the country?  They're in a paid job and the aim in any paid job is to make as much cash as possible before you're out the door one way or another and that's what they're doing.  I mean, I wouldn't expect a McDonalds employee to stop and think "how will what I do next affect the long term economic and political health of Britain as a whole?" every time they go to mop up sick or unblock a toilet, and maybe we are being unreasonable to expect that of the Tories.

[JTurner]

I mean, I wouldn't expect a McDonalds employee to stop and think "how will what I do next affect the long term economic and political health of Britain as a whole?" every time they go to mop up sick or unblock a toilet, and maybe we are being unreasonable to expect that of the Tories.

Except that thinking "how will what I do next affect the long term economic and political health of Britain as a whole?" is Cameron and Clegg's bloody job.

I'd like a McDonalds employee to occasionally stop and think "how will what I do next affect the long term health of my customer as a whole?".

[TordelBack]

They're in a paid job and the aim in any paid job is to make as much cash as possible before you're out the door one way or another ...

I know you are exaggerating for ironic effect here Prof, but can you imagine if that was really the aim in every paid job?  I appreciate that there may be jobs where your only aim is the dosh of a Thursday (stockbroking, Eastenders scriptwriter, paparazzi etc.), but happily most folk put more into their work than the value of their pay would require.  One quakes in horror at the notion of a world where nurses only put in what they were remunerated for.  I suspect this is something that the voracious parasites that infest political and financial life will never understand - work itself has a value that transcends the monetary.