Tag: cost of living criusis

Shoplifting Offences In England and Wales At Highest Level In 20 years

According to new data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shoplifting offences in England and Wales in 2023 have risen to the highest level since records began in 2003.

According to the data there has been more than 430,000 recorded cases last year which had increased by 37% in the year ending 2023 when compared to 2022. This makes it the highest levels recorded since records started being kept in 2003.

James Cleverly responded by saying that although the police record it as a ‘sub threshold crime’ and it has a so called ‘corrosive effect’ on peoples confidence in the police. Its not surprising that he appeared to have zero sympathy for those effectively forced to shoplift due to various circumstances.

Julian Heyes, criminal defence lawyer and partner at Berris Law LLP went on to say ” The release of the recent shoplifting figures simply demonstrate that the years of austerity and cuts in policing have meant that the investigation of these so called minor offences have long since been neglected and ignored”

“The police cannot be blamed for this as they, much like the rest of the criminal justice system are on their knees. The cost to the high street is immeasurable and causing shops and businesses to close or restrict access to customers, not to mention the horrendous risks that members of staff have to take when challenging shoplifters”

The truth is that shop lifting is rising for various reasons including and not excluding others: The increasing cost of living, high energy bills, low wages, less than adequate social security payments, increases in mortgage repayments, social security payments being too low and badly paid employment.

Whilst many people with addictions shoplift to fund their habits there’s very little support given to them to conquer their addictions thus the circle of offending continues.

Let’s be clear, very few people actually want to shoplift its a situation they find themselves in through desperation and is usually the last option that they can take after exhausting other avenues, they’re desperate and see this as a last resort.

We all appreciate and acknowledge that there are foodbanks that help people but not everyone can access them or can wait until the next time they’re open. People are driven by hunger and distress and we live in desperate times which is entirely the governments creation.

The UK has a government hell bent on lining their own pockets and their business and personal friends with money that has been taken from the public purse. There’s been a sharp decline in the physical and mental wellbeing of the working class and mortality levels are rising. The constant stripping of funding to local councils has also paid a huge part in this and town centres aren’t being cared for like they should be because theres no longer the financial means to do so. This has a direct impact upon the high street.

The solution to this is quite simple and to be honest basic economics. For a society to succeed and thrive there has to be financial investment into the public, the more money they have to spend undoubtably benefits their general health it also helps to transform the areas that they live.

It’s easy to blame a shoplifter for shoplifting, and I don’t condone violence towards retail staff. The blame lies totally at the governments feet. Society as we knew it has been broken by the current government, the amount of desperate and hungry people are at their highest in modern times, desperate people are forced to take measures that they would previously have never dreamt of doing.

Hurl your anger at the government and not Joe Public.

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Government Plans To Stop All Social Security Payments For Claimants If Seen Not Making Enough Effort To Find Employment

It appears that the government is going full throttle with their let’s punish unemployed people as much as possible until they give up plans.

They now plan to completely stop unemployed claimants of all of their social security payments if they appear to be refusing to look for employment.

Not content with this if their plans come to fruition they will also be stripped of their right to free prescriptions and discounted bus travel, the Chancellor has announced.

According to the Chancellor this will be the biggest welfare shake-up for a decade.

If they appear to be making no effort to find work will be kicked out of the system after six months.

Those who do engage but have still not found a job after 18 months will be forced to take on work or forfeit their benefits.

According to Mel Stride, the Work and Pensions Secretary, the reforms should be seen as a “huge investment” in employment, rather than a “savings exercise”.

Yeah right it’s all about saving money and making the poorest and most in need pay the most financially.


As part of the proposed reforms claimants that claim the basic rate of Universal Credit who are fit to work but refuse to engage for six months will have their claims closed completely.

I repeat the government will also take away ALL of their monthly allowance and their rights to receive  free NHS prescriptions, dental care, legal aid and bus and rail discounts.

I don’t need to say how much of a dangerous precedent this is setting. Many decisions made by DWP work coaches are based on their opinion and are not based on fact.

So if in their opinion they aren’t making enough effort All and I repeat ALL of their payments will stop.

If this goes ahead they will literally leave people to starve, live in cold damp properties and force thousands onto the streets.

We already know Job Coaches aren’t always sympathetic towards claimants that are struggling even when they are ill or have other genuine reasons as to why they’re struggling.

If in their opinion it’s not good enough every payment could be stopped. As we know there is a shortage of well paid suitable employment.

People just can’t accept any job especially if their circumstances don’t allow them to.

I know I’m repeating myself here but I do feel that this will push thousands of people over the edge, living in distress unable to cope.

The government may as well just admit their massive hatred for unemployed, vulnerable and disabled people.

The very fact that they want to take money away from people leaving them with absolutely nothing just to save them money is about as low as they can go.

Under no circumstances should the public be punished for the shit decisions the government has made. The UK is in a mess, going through a recession, even though they won’t admit to this.

Foreign countries no longer want to invest in the UK and who can blame them. The UK stock market is in a really bad shape and still the government refuses to do anything about this, hell they don’t even want to admit it.

Unemployed people haven’t wrecked the UK and they certainly shouldn’t be punished for their mistakes either.

It’s virtually a death sentence and this needs to be challenged by everyone right now and with the greatest urgency because people will die and this is no exaggeration.

And yes I’m not just angry I’m furious.

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DWP Work Coach Shortage Unable To Cope With Increasing Unemployment. Safestyle Goes Into Administration.



The PCS union that represents DWP workers have recently warned that there’s a “staffing chaos” at the DWP, with work coach roles being particularly affected. Meanwhile the government apparently seeks to hire thousands of new staff despite having just made hundreds of workers redundant.

As a result of this unmitigated staffing chaos, additional “support measures” are supposedly being put in place in Jobcentres to manage the workload of work coaches.


The support measures include reducing the frequency of work coach contact with some claimants from fortnightly to monthly and shortening some meetings from 50 minutes to 30 minutes.

This will be welcomed by claimants that might have to travel quite a distance to their nearest Jobcentre.

However here’s the kickback which effectively wipes out any supposed help offered. The Chancellor has announced an end to civil service expansion, with an immediate cap on the civil service headcount, with a view to reducing it to pre-pandemic levels.

Go figure, it’s a disaster something that the government is very familiar with. They’ve proven time and time again that they’re incapable of managing anything with efficiently.

With the DWP failing to manage its current workload with no let up in the foreseeable future, the very idea that tens of thousands of additional claimants can be removed from the LCWRA group and given effective support to help them into work is rubbish, a bare faced lie that they will be reminded of in the future.

Basically it’s very clear to see  that the sole purpose of making the WCA much harsher is to save money and not to help claimants.

Think about it, they don’t care about claimants especially disabled ones that are already in an extremely vulnerable position.

Let’s take for example, approximately 680 staff have recently been made redundant by the window and door manufacturer and seller Safestyle.

The business has gone into administration with no warning to its employees and the GMB union  expects up to 600 job losses.


However on Monday, administrators Interpath Advisory said the number of redundancies was about 680.

Sadly only 70 of the roughly 750 staff have been retained.


Appallingly saff were unexpectedly texted to “down tools” on Friday evening and received news of the appointment of administrators on Monday in the car park of the company’s headquarters in Bradford, GMB said.

They’ve been made redundant with immediate effect and told they won’t get another penny from the company.”

GMB organiser Bob McNeill added: “Bosses didn’t even have the decency to let them into the building out of the pouring rain”

This will result in at least another 680 people being made unemployed due to no fault of their own. As pointed out above they aren’t going to receive any more payment from the company.

This is another 680 people that will put increased pressure on an already failing system that can’t cope with the demand.

It’s clear to see that despite the government’s denial, the UK is going through a recession which combined with the cost of living and energy cost crisis is very concerning for everyone that owns a business, big or small.

Every day more companies and small local businesses are forced to shut their doors which will also put even more pressure on the DWP system.

It’s a disaster, heartbreaking for everyone affected but the government is doing what they do best, causing chaos and even more suffering for the poorest and most vulnerable.

They need to go as soon as possible. I fear that they aim to cause as much chaos and confusion as they can before being forced to leave number 10.

The damage they’ve done to this country is irreparable, it’s hard to come back from this if not impossible.

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Government Plans to Impose Stricter Sanctions For Benefits Claimants

The government is planning to impose stricter sanctions for benefits claimants, the chancellor Jeremy Hunt has confirmed

As this year’s Conservative Party conference ends Jeremy Hunt revealed plans to impose tougher benefit sanctions. Saying that it will encourage people to look for work.

However research has shown that sanctions cause destitution and worse for already financially vulnerable people.

Punishing people even more because they can’t find work doesn’t help people find work and combined with the cost of living crisis it will push thousands of people into even more poverty causing extreme distress and harm.

When speaking at the Conservative Party Conference, chancellor Jeremy Hunt said that 100,00 people are leaving the labour market every year for a “life on benefits”. He also said that this is why the government is replacing work capability assessments and examining the sanctions regime.

Hunt neglects to tell his audience that one of the reasons why unemployment is rising is because business such as Wilkos and small businesses are being forced to close. They find themselves unable to trade anymore because of the financial crisis.

Hunt went on to say “It isn’t fair that someone who refuses to look for a job gets the same as someone trying their best.”

This isn’t true though, people claiming universal credit working or not working have to adhere to strict job searching rules as stated in their claimant commitments.

Pitching claimant against claimant isn’t a new trick by the Tory party. They’ve been doing it for years under their ‘deserving’ and ‘undeserving’ poor ideology.

Their remit has however changed as it’s clear to see that they regard everyone as not deserving of help especially disabled people who always bear the brunt of the government’s cruel policy changes.

Instead further punishments will undoubtedly force vulnerable people to look for unsuitable low paid work which could damage their health and plunge them into even more poverty than they’re already in.

Anela Anwar, Chief Executive of the anti-poverty charity Z2K, said: “The government needs to stop scapegoating people in poverty. More people are claiming disability benefits because more people are seriously ill or disabled – not because people have suddenly become lazier.

“The punitive and trigger-happy benefit sanctions system already leaves hundreds of thousands of people without the money they need to survive every year. And it doesn’t work: evidence tells us that sanctions leave people sicker and even further from the labour market.

“Further tightening the screw will only cause more destitution, prevent people re-engaging with DWP, and no matter the safeguards in place, will inevitably affect some of the most vulnerable.”

Indeed it will and life is going to become a great deal harder for vulnerable people that need help and support rather than even more punishment from a cruel uncaring government.

Personally I’d like to see them all live as we have to, with no access to funds and forced to live in damp, substandard housing. I’d like to see if they could survive this for over a year, but it won’t happen.

One thing they’ve managed to excel at is totally destroying the UK, its foundation, reputation, people, industry, businesses.

The current state of the stock market proves this, when big businesses and major players from around the world stop investing in the UK there really is no future for it. No one wants to invest in a country that’s failing everything and everyone.

We need a general election asap because the Tory government will stop at nothing to continue to feather their own nests, even when they put the future of the UK at great risk.

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It totally reflects the state of the UK at the moment.

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Two Child Benefit Cap Set To Continue If Labour Win Next General Election

Rather disapointingly Labour Party leader Keir Starmer has so far reaffirmed his recent decision not to scrap the two-child benefit cap. His reasoning for making this decision is financial stating that there will have to be more ‘tough choices’ if Labour is to win the next election.

At the recent Future of Britain conference, Starmer said Labour had had to make “really ruthless” decisions telling his top team: “Tough choices is not a soundbite. We’re going to have to take them. Without them, we don’t get to the next stage.”

Senior Labour MP Stella Creasy went on to argue that scrapping the cap could in fact save money as it was “potentially costing more than it is saving” as greater hardship prevented people from finding work”.

The two child benefit cap policy was introduced by George Osborne when he was Tory chancellor. This cruel policy prevents parents from claiming universal credit for any third or subsequent child.
Scrapping the two child cap would take approximately 270,000 households with children out of poverty at an estimated cost of £1.4bn in the first year.

The benefits far outweigh the decision to keep this cruel policy. Parents would be able to afford more basic essentials to keep their children healthy and happy. This in turn would lessen families reliance upon food banks and other emergency services. It would also improve physical and mental health of both parents and children which subsequently will cut down pressure on the NHS.

It would also improve both local and national economies, if people have more money to shop locally for food and essentials the economy will improve. I accept that this wouldn’t happen overnight, but it would undoubtedly help especially when we’re experiencing a massive cost of living crisis.

Starmer has agreed that the current mood of the country is “pretty bleak” as he set out the need to reassure voters about the situation while also setting out a vision for the future. Repurposing a slogan used by New Labour, he said: “We need three things: growth, growth, growth.”

The real ‘tough choices’ are being made everyday by parents unable to provide food and clothing for their children often going without meals themselves so their children can eat. I honestly don’t think he realises how bad it is for them. If he did he would make it a priority to stop this cruel policy.

For working class people their futures are looking even bleaker than he can imagine and not making the decision to end the two child limit policy is in my eyes the wrong thing to do. I’d like to ask him several things; what have these children done to you to make you act in such a manner? Don’t they deserve a decent quality of life? Why are you enabling the continuance of their suffering which will prove to be more expensive for the country in the long term?

Call me old fashioned if you like but I believe that every child matters, that they all should have a decent quality of life, a decent education and given the support that they need to do so. Starmer should keep in mind that these children forced to live in poverty are our both our future and the countries also. They’ll eventually become the ones to make important decisions, help improve the economy and be the employees that provide the essential services that we will be dependant on when we get older.

This decision isn’t a vote winner either, decisions like this will stop people from voting labour in future elections. They aren’t going to vote for a political party that ultimately doesn’t represent them in any way and won’t fight of change on their behalf.

I hope that Keir Starmer changes his mind and decides to put our children health and wellbeing as a priority because they deserve it.

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PIP Appeal Rates Rise By 119%

It has recently been revealed by Benefits And Work that PIP (Personal Independence Payments) appeal figures have risen by 119% in 2022, this is compared to the same quarter in 2021.

The rate of UC (Universal Credit) appeals has also risen by 28% the latest official figures show.

The number of cases that were dealt increased by only 18% in the same time period compared to figures from 2021.


Figures show that there were 63,000 outstanding cases by the end of September 2021 which adds to an annual increase of 96%.



The average wait time for an appeal averaged at 31 weeks. This shows that it is 8 weeks down from 2021 figures , but is likely to increase over the coming quarters as the backlog rises inexorably.

The success rate for PIP appeals remains unchanged at 68%. This shows that the vast majority of those who appeal are correct in their decision to appeal however the wait time for appeals to be heard continues to rise.



For UC claimants it is revealed that the appeal success rates are now at 49% which is an increase of 7% on the previous year.

DLA (Disability Living Allowance) success rates are now at 61% which is down 6%.

Meanwhile ESA (Employment and Support Allowance success rates are now 53%, down on the previous year at 1%

Appealing against any DWP (Department of Work and Pensions) decision is always daunting and extremely stressful. Not only is the appeal process hard to navigate, the waiting times for appeals and tribunals to be heard is increasing.

The success rate shows that those making the decision to appeal have made the right decision in doing so.

Sadly many people that are entitled to appeal fail to do so because they can’t afford to wait a long time for their appeal to be heard and also can’t cope with the stress involved, many having no support network to rely upon.

I don’t need to tell you that the downright discrimination and hatred given to disabled and unemployed people is totally unfair and discriminatory.

This cruelty combined with the increasing cost of living and energy prices is making life extremely difficult for those that are most in need of financial help.

In an ideal world this wouldn’t be happening at all but there won’t be any positive changes made to the system whilst there’s a Tory government in power.

The conservative party is doing what they do best, punishing the most vulnerable and poor for their very existence, they need to be stopped and soon before more people suffer and die as a result of their actions.

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Latest Cost Of Living Payment Dates

New Cost Of Living payment dates folks. Remember, it's from the first date and not on that date. Like before they'll be sending them out in batches.

Untitled

New Cost Of Living payment dates folks. Remember, it's from the first date and not on that date. Like before they'll be sending them out in batches.

Untitled

New Cost Of Living payment dates folks. Remember, it's from the first date and not on that date. Like before they'll be sending them out in batches.

Untitled

New Cost Of Living payment dates folks. Remember, it's from the first date and not on that date. Like before they'll be sending them out in batches.