whoo, thread creep. As a University worker, I can honestly say that I wouldn't trust quite a few of the students I see to make a cup of tea let alone hold down a skilled job. The actually crazy part of it though is the government has been essentially forcing Universities to take on more students year by year for about the last decade. Now the economy has crashed and the Higher Education budget is likely to lose the best part of a billion pounds, there's no way in hell the universities will be able to provide places for all the people the government think should be at University. Not unless they charge UK students the same fees they charge overseas students and that would raise one hell of a stink. The upshot of this all is that qualification grades are going to go up across the board and we'll almost be back to where we were 20 years ago, where Universities are relatively 'elitist' and only the minority were able to attend.

Back to the increase in childcare fees. As I was driving home I heard an interview with a woman who was complaining about the cost of childcare. She apparently earns about £3K a month (!) and her husband earns about £2K. They are being charged about a grand a month for childcare on their lone infant (they both work 5 days a week...). They live in Canary wharf, by the way. She was suggesting they could get an extra tax break (you can already claim vouchers for up to £250 a month (!) for childcare if you pay enough taxes) to help pay for this ludicrous expense.

She was complaining that when they have another child, effectively it will make as much sense for her husband to stay at home as work, as all his wages will go on childcare. I'm sure I wasn't the only only at that point screaming at the radio 'well don't have another child then you stupid woman'. A notion has grown that people have 'the right to have a child'. And presumably from that 'right' it logically follows that if you can't afford to have as many kids as you want, the state should help you.

This is frankly cobblers. You do not have 'the right' to have a child. You should have a child if you are able to care for and provide for it. You absolutely certainly should not expect the state to pay for children you have in the plain knowledge that you aren't able to care and provide for them. Sod off.

All part of the government's method to tie everybody in to an educational/mortgage/pension pyramid scheme.

I agree. Unless you have a rich parent you will end up indebted very early on one way or another.

I agree. I have a new baby and if we want to work we have to pay for the child to be looked after, whatever that costs. For us its going to be around £500 a month (bye bye new iMac ).

Yes but imagine the years of guilt tripping your kids as they get older. "You cost me at least 6 imacs and a powermac, you really should remember that, now get off to nursery school!"

It requires two children per couple to maintain the population (no immigration etc), you should receive no state help whatsoever for the third and any subsequent children.

Actually I think its 2.1 ( or something very close) to allow for
People not surviving long enough to have children
Some people (like me) choosing not to have children

Are you trying for a Darwin Award?

More likely VHEMT.

To which they will reply 'what's a mac?' as they manipulate their virtual homework with their iGloves.

Jon

There's a lass a couple of doors up from us who is a single mum, 3 kids, doesn't work, has a fairly new car (57 plate), is paid housing benefit and claims all she possibly can. Her house is a temple to the technological gods - 3 x puters, 2 x laptops, a plasma screen tv in every room (yup - she's got a small one in the bog) and her preferred method of communication is through her iPhone She goes on a package holiday for two weeks every year and this year is taking the kids to Disney World in Americashire somewhere. She does like to 'live it large' in the pub a couple of nights a week.

The wife and I both work. We have 2 kids, a mortgage, 2 cars etc and are pretty much living from week to week. We can't afford a holiday this year

Where are we going wrong?


Oh bugger.........

Al

Okay nothing was mentioned about the brands, the computers and laptops could be cheapies, possibly bought on eBay secondhand. Plasmas are getting cheap, plus she make have an extended family like the Gallaghers or Maguires who get her everything she wants. package hols may not be that expensive if you have young kids, they can go free after all, go out of season and it is cheaper.

As for your expenses you do have two cars which must be at least £2000 in running costs per year, add in the big killer - the mortgage. She would get housing benefit. Blame governments for supporting a housing bubble that costs the average person dearly.

All her stuff is brand new - Sony for the main tv and Panasonic for the one attached to the Wii/Playstation 3. The three computers are Dell, all under 2 years old, with the main one being a Studio 8100 coupled to a 24" widescreen - that's pretty much a grands worth and some. The lappys are Dell 'Lollypop, Lollypop' coloured things I agree the kids could go free but that almost certainly excludes flights - she's going on her own with the kids and staying on site, not a cheap option.


Tell me about it. But we both require cars for work. I get mileage at 40p per mile but we used to get 36p a mile and a monthly allowance of £86 to offset costs. My wife works for a housing association and the amount of housing benefit paid to her 'customers' is criminal. Still, our mortgage is cheaper than some places...

Al

Never seen that before - like it

Yes but the benefit claimant does not receive the housing benefit, it subsidises the buy-to-let investors who bid up the prices of all homes and hence your mortgage. Governments have relied on housing bubbles to get them out of trouble. Yet you are no better off, because you have to increase your debts to cope. Your wages almost certainly have not kept pace with inflation over the last decade. And because of that you have less money for other things.