The Indy Scapegoats The Poor!

This balderdash from The Independent newspaper really gets my goat!

“Reeves stealth taxes ‘hammering’ workers while pensioners and benefits claimants ‘better off’” 02.01.2026

There is zero balance to the article, but rather a deliberate anti-social neoliberal slant.

40% of folk on benefits are in employment, but jobs pay so badly that the State is topping up their income. It ought to be pointed out that UK benefits pay mere survival rates no where near reaching the level of a Living Wage, with many foregoing food, heating &/or medications. Most users of food-banks are benefit-recipients with disabilities, severe illnesses or children.

Yes, children! Some 4,500,000 children in the United Kingdom live in poverty. Scrapping the two-child limit means that more Child Benefit will be paid out, a desperate fillip that in no way makes up for the ever-ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

As to pensioners, UK pensioners are by far the worst-off in Western Europe, and below average for OECD countries.

That the once-balanced and fair Indy cites an example of someone earning £50,000 (£31,602 is the median UK annual income per O.N.S.) per year having to pay £505 p.a. more tax without explaining that those receiving Social Security are on such low levels of support and have experienced real-term cuts* for years, absolutely disgusts me.

* Increases based on general inflation do not recognise the above-inflation increases in food & energy prices, let alone medications & prescriptions & optician & dental-care & mobility-aids, etc. that force folk in the lower income deciles to often borrow money to pay for basic necessities of life.

Link to description of data of DWP benefit claims.

Eight Years of Pope Francis

Eight years ago, Cardinal Bergoglio became Pope Francis. At the time (see quotations below) I was filled with Hope. Given what he has had to contend with, for me, Francis has not failed to fulfil his promise thus far. I was and am especially proud of his encyclical, Evangelii Gaudium [The Joy of the Gospel], upon which I blogged in November 2013, not for its religious commentary but rather its pragmatic approach to poverty, institutional injustice and the importance of ethical business, banking & economics. From an ethics perspective it is well worth a read, or read my blog-post for the edited highlights. I do not consider myself a religious person, but rather a spiritual one. I shall continue to pray for the Pope from time to time, as he needs all the support he can get.

[Image description: opening page to Evangelii Gaudium]

G_d bless Pope Francis! 🙏🏻

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🇬🇧🇺🇸 Pope Francis: that has to be a good omen; a humble saint; a humble man. He's certainly going to need God's help if he's to survive the machinations of the Vatican, the Mafioso and the Freemasons, let alone the gay cabal!

Pope Francis gives me hope that the church might renew itself. %D

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🇪🇸 Papa Francis: que tiene que ser un buen augurio; un santo humilde; un hombre humilde. Está seguro que él va a necesitar la ayuda de Dios si va a sobrevivir a las intrigas del Vaticano, del mafioso y de los masones (y mucho menos ¡la cábala gay!).

Papa Francis me da esperanzas de que la iglesia pueda renovarse. %)

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🇩🇪🇦🇹 Papst Francis: das muß ein gutes Omen; ein bescheidener Heiliger; ein demütiger Mensch. Es ist sicher daß er um Gottes Hilfe brauchen wird, wenn er die Machenschaften des Vatikans, der Mafioso und den Freimaurern überleben wird, und dazu die Homosexuell Kabale.

Papst Francis gibt mir Hoffnung, daß die Kirche sich zu erneuern könnte. %)

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No More Austerity Demonstration, 21st June 2014

[Image descriptions: the crowd & the march; via One Honest Man © u/k]

According to The Guardian in an article published at 20.45:

"An estimated 50,000 people in London addressed by speakers, including Russell Brand, after People's Assembly march"

However, details of the number actually on the march are not known and are estimated at tens of thousands, because:

"The Metropolitan police [aka The Met] refused to provide an estimate."

As far as I am aware, of mainstream media (MSM) outlets, Russia Today or RT was the first to broadcast an item on the demonstration at 13.43. The news channel linked the march to recent reports on poverty in the UK:

"The Poverty and Social Exclusion project found that more than 500,000 children are living in families who can’t afford to feed them properly and 5.5 million adults have to go without essential clothing."

Under the title "Russell Brand Calls for 'joyful revolution'" ITV (via ITN) commented at 19.20 as follows:

"Comedian Russell Brand has called on thousands of protesters to be part of a "peaceful, effortless, joyful revolution" that seizes power back from Westminster.

The former Big Brother's Big Mouth presenter, who this year implored readers of the New Statesman magazine to abandon the current political system, told crowds gathered in London's Parliament Square that MPs no longer represented the people.

Speaking in the shadow of the Houses of Parliament at the end of a march marking the one-year anniversary of the People's Assembly being formed, Brand stripped off his T-shirt and replaced it with one carrying the message "Firefighters rescue people not bankers".

An estimated 50,000 people took part in the march, which started at the BBC in Portland Place where protesters accused the broadcaster of ignoring the plight of impoverished Britons."

A little later, at 20.17, The Huffington Post also reported on the protest in central London. They quoted Sam Fairbairn, the national secretary of the People's Assembly:

""Soon we will reach a size and influence where neither the BBC nor this austerity Government will be able to ignore us."

He said the group will aim to hold the biggest protest in British history later this year."

Even the normally right-wing Express newspaper reported on the events and even-handedly at that, saying:

"An estimated 50,000 people took part in the march, which started at the BBC in Portland Place where protesters accused the broadcaster of ignoring the plight of impoverished Britons."

Whilst Google did not provide me with a link, I checked Sky News and they also reported on the demo at 10.09 quoting and character-assassinating Russell Brand:

""This will be a peaceful, effortless, joyful revolution and I'm very grateful to be involved in the People's Assembly."

Around 50,000 people took part in the march and Brand was joined by speakers who also included comedian and commentator Mark Steel, MP Caroline Lucas and journalist Owen Jones."

So, the reader is perhaps wondering where are the link to and quotations from Britain's national broadcaster, paid for by every television-owner via the licence fee, the once balanced BBC. Well, Auntie Beeb apparently did not notice the marchers meeting outside its news-gathering HQ, nor the 50K folk who streamed through London. It is really odd, because I live in Manchester, and find that London and the South-East (London's Hinterland) are usually the idée fixe of the Corporation's reporting.

As on previous occasions when I have criticised the BBC, I tried to ensure that I had not missed anything from its website.

At 22.10 I searched for "austerity march". The Beeb had reported nothing, but did give a link to Russia Today:

At 22.15 I searched for "Russell Brand". Again nothing from the BBC, but links to Russia Today again plus The Guardian and The Huffington Post articles:

I tried a several searches for "London demonstration", but kept getting the following screen (I took screenshots at 22.17. and 22.19):

Finally, at 22.20 I succeeded in obtaining the following search result, which only referenced an article in the London Evening Standard from Friday:

What possible explanation could there be for the BBC failing to cover a huge demonstration about a subject clearly of national interest and, as such, importance? The ONLY possibilities now have to be political interference or political bias. Whichever: the BBC can no longer be considered an unbiased, balanced and fair news outlet.

The BBC has form: it failed to report on "Manchester’s largest protest in modern history" back in October last year when a similar number of demonstrators, including this author, protested outside the Conservative Party Conference.

Should you be unhappy with this situation you might wish to lodge a complaint; but don't raise your hopes, for as reader of this blog know, the BBC will just refuse to even take any notice. However, if like the chap in this video, you really want to have a go - he had his call cut off twice - he gives you the telephone number to ring at the end. Good luck!

For anyone interested in following events of the day, check out the hashtag #NoMoreAusterity on Twitter.

UPDATES

BBC

Some time between ten and eleven on Sunday 22nd June, the BBC finally put up a news report entitled "Thousands attend People's Assembly's first austerity protest". The full text reads:

"The first austerity protest organised by the People's Assembly campaign group has taken place in London.

Organisers say tens of thousands of people met at Portland Place and marched to Parliament Square on Saturday.

The group included politicians and union leaders and was protesting about the impact of cuts around the country."

ESTABLISHMENT

I should also point out that besides the Met refusing to provide an estimate of numbers on the actual march and the BBC failing to adequately nor appropriately report, the Guardian article referenced above also points out that the Prime Minister's spokesperson also refused to make any comment. It really does look like the Establishment closed ranks, doesn't it?

LAMPOON

[Image © Rick Campbell]

Food-Banks: Shaming Our Nation

[Image description: ten bags of groceries]

A couple of weeks back I signed "Parliament: Debate UK hunger and rise in foodbank use" known as Jack's Petition (#jackspetition) after its creator Jack Monroe. The tally as I write stands at 142,688.

An hour ago I received the following email:

Today's the day!After 142,000 people signed our petition (142,000!) -- Parliament will debate why so many people in the UK are hungry and relying on foodbanks to feed their families this Christmas.
This debate is long overdue and it has been our sheer force of numbers that has made it happen, so thank you.
Hundreds of you have contacted your MPs to make sure they show up and stand up for hungry people in their constituencies -- people in work, out of work, living on their own, with children, without children, all struggling to put food on the table. I'll be in Parliament today to report back on which MPs turn up.
This debate is about finding out why so many people are hungry in one of the richest countries in the world. It is just the first step to tackling the issue but it is crucial. We need to understand the causes of hunger before we can address them.
Let's make sure everyone knows this debate is happening. Please send a tweet today using #foodbanks and #jackspetition. Tell people the reason you signed this petition. If you need inspiration of what to tweet, here are 20 facts about foodbanks in the UK. Pick one to tweet (or tweet all 20!):
Thank you for all you have done so far.
Jack Monroe
@MsJackMonroeP.S. If you are not on Twitter share these 20 facts about foodbanks with your friends on email and ask them to sign the petition at www.change.org/foodbanks 

The notification arrived whilst I was out and about in my mobility-scooter. Co-incidently this morning is the only day my local food-bank, St Alban's Parish of Broadheath, Altrincham whose logo appears below, is open for receiving donations, so I was delivering my annual Christmas food package. I could not sit down in all good conscience to a gargantuan feast knowing others were hungry. By feeding others my scruples will not trouble me over Yuletide.

The helpers very kindly made me a cuppa as there is a biting Easterly blowing outside. Whilst sipping my tea and the volunteers awaited clients, we chatted about the current state of affairs in the country. The ladies recalled WWII and said they had known nothing like this back then in our wealthy area. Now there are four food-banks in our locality. Underneath the exterior of Haves are very many Have-Nots. One OAP volunteer spoke of her shock at encountering such poverty, the worst she had seen in her considerable life-span.

Last week it was in the news that more than a million pensioners are in food-poverty. In previous weeks we have heard of millions of children going hungry and many now being fed by teachers out of their own pockets. Today in the news are the details of the human rights breaches of the homeless including access to food. The United Kingdom is a full signatory to the United Nations various conventions. According to today's Guardian the ConDem co-alition has turned down emergency food aid from Europe. The Conservative Party of the last few decades has proven itself to be unconcerned and completely dégagé in its responses towards poverty. The Liberal Democrats used to boast about their social justice credentials. Well that halo has slipped, tarnished and rusted away. Alas for once great Britain, the other two main parties, Labour and UKIP are as doggedly neo-liberal and corporatist. So no change in the future however anyone decides to vote.

To paraphrase the Bard, something is distinctly rotten in the state of England!

Tory Slates Use of Food-Banks By Starving

Last week a headline in Manchester's local newspaper, Manchester Evening News (M.E.N.), read:

Tory MP: Food banks could make people too reliant on handouts

I have interspersed some of quotations from the article with my own commentary.

[Image description: Paul Maynard by Blackpool tower; courtesy Wikipedia {{subst:npd}}] 

"Paul Maynard, who works for Minister of State Oliver Letwin, said people could start going to food banks out of habit rather than helping themselves." 

Emergency food parcels should not be given to people – because they could get too reliant on handouts, a Tory MP has said.

This is total balderdash, individuals referred to a food-bank may only do so three times using vouchers given to them by a social worker, a GP (family doctor), a CAB (Citizens' Advice Bureau) adviser or a head-teacher (school principal). They cannot return to the same food-bank. Given most areas only have one food-bank, it is difficult to see how any but a tiny minority would be able to form a habit. Three visits certainly does not constitute a behavioural norm nor does it indicate dependence. According to the Trussell Trust, the UK's main food-bank provider, the main reason for folk needing food assistance is due to governmental delays in processing benefits to which the individuals are fully entitled. In a sense, for very many folk, it is the Government who are actually creating the circumstances that force them to use the very food-banks the so-called Honourable Member seeks to castigate.

"Mr Maynard, who has some of the country’s most deprived wards in his own constituency [Blackpool North & Cleveleys], said: “I value personal responsibility. 

I do not believe that immediate food relief should be the role of the government. We can’t make food banks part of the welfare state. 

What I don’t want to do is normalise food poverty."

I wrote and submitted a comment that was accepted and now appears below the article:

"Under Britain's UN obligations the State is obliged to ensure food security for all its citizens. It is currently in breach of those obligations in a similar way as it is in breach of housing obligations, as recently exposed by a UN rapporteur. 

The so-called party of law & order seems to only want to follow the legal requirements that suit; hardly an exemplar to its citizens!"

The news item continued:

"But charities hit back, saying they had been left to face a huge number of people going hungry because of changes to welfare payments." 

"Representatives from debt advice charities and food-growing schemes said they feared the bedroom tax had left people too poor to eat…" 

And "the Poverty Commission warn[s] 1.6m people across the region are in danger of sliding into severe poverty."

Alas there are gullible and uninformed individuals who actually believe much of the rhetoric and polemic spouted by Maynard and others within the ConDem administration and the main-stream media (MSM). One such chap stated about the MP's comments:

"What he says is right, what do these "customers" spend the benefits they get on? Yes there are essential fuel costs but it's sometimes a lifestyle choice, ie have takeaway/supermarket prepacked meals v the cheaper make it yourself meals."(sic)

I felt obliged to stand up for folk…

"In response to James Wales (8.32): many disabled & elderly have to buy pre-packed meals; some due to physical inability to cook (arthritis/pain/spasms/shakes/weakness/etc.); some because they only get 15mins from social care to prepare & cook a meal as well as any other assistance that is required."

I am part of the WoW campaign which is trying to raise awareness of the difficulties, stress and unfortunately tragedies that have been and will continue to be caused by the so-called 'welfare reforms'. If the reader would like to help, please add your signature to the WoWpetition.

Oh, and by the by, this IS the Member of Parliament who described we disabled campaigners as "extremists" putting us on a par with terrorists. Though he did later apologise and attempt to retract the statement.