And so it came to pass that, in the months (I refuse to say...) of the pandemic, the demon masquerading as chancellor did grant a portion of the precariat a boon. Those 'lucky' enough to receive the blessings of Universal Credit were given an extra twenty pounds per week, for a time. Oh truly these are the days of salad! Iced gems all 'round!
Trouble is he didn't grant it to the bloody rest of us. If, like me, you're in receipt of a legacy benefit, which means you have yet to be transferred to Universal Credit (something over which you have no say), then you get NOTHING!
Now it further transpires that, when this effulgent boon expires (the impermanence of things), the Chancellor is considering giving a five hundred quid lump sum instead of continuing. Given that the £20 increase doesn't apply to legacy claimants, it will be a fucking kick in the nuts to give only Universal Credit claimants such a windfall. The Tories certainly know how to play divide and rule because that is an obvious (if perhaps unplanned - is he that smart?) consequence. I will spit bloody feathers if that is the case. Yes this might make me sound like a grasping pauper, thus proving Tory propaganda right in respect of the perception of the undeserving poor, but ffs!
That, considerable issue, aside, this is the shiny copper penny. Like that 'joke' where the rich man asks the bumpkin, in return for services rendered, if he'd like the shiny copper penny, or instead the dirty old piece of paper that just happens to bear her majesty's likeness. Surely, the aristocrat thinks, the bumpkin is more likely to be impressed by the shiny thing? The poor after all are quite thick you know!
It will cost the treasury more to pay a year's worth of £52 than to just give out £500 in one lump sum, which is about half that amount. This is devious, but it's what we've come to expect from these Tory scumbags. They're happy to starve kids, there's little they wouldn't do, especially to the poorest in what they almost certainly see as a time to push through such punishing social policies. We all know austerity redux is imminent.
What makes this worse is knowing poor people aren't stupid, they're just poor! This means that an offer like this is impossible: who is going to refuse, when they're on the breadline, a windfall of £500? Even if it's going to be less in the long run. People living hand to mouth - especially now - simply cannot afford ot make any other choice. Not that it will be their choice to make; this will be decided by the rich ruling elite. Labour will, of course, nod align. Snoozy Starmer has done fuck all in opposition. Tomorrow they have forced a vote on whether to keep the £20 scheme going. A vote they will of course lose as they don't have the numbers and the persuasive power. It also means it's more likely this idea will actually come to pass because a) the government will win the vote and thus end the scheme as planned and b) giving £500 is, as I've said, cheaper.
I just want nice things!
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