Dec 20, 20206 minThe Myth of the Undeserving PoorI recently finished reading The Myth of the Undeserving Poor: a Christian response to poverty in Britain today by Martin Charlesworth and...
Oct 25, 20203 minIs Philanthropy Christian?I have been thinking recently about what Christian lending and borrowing would look like if we tried to incorporate Biblical principles,...
Sep 27, 20205 minWhy I'm opposed to UBII am opposed to the idea of a Universal Basic Income on economic grounds – I don’t think that the sorts of money needed to lift those...
May 25, 20193 min(satirical) UBI critique – when the robots take overUBI imagines a world in which all jobs are carried out by robots. The increased use of robots in work is assumed to mean that we can...
May 25, 20192 min(satirical) UBI critique – what happens when no-one needs charity or earnings?Let us imagine that a UBI is paid that is at the minimum income standard (MIS). The MIS is enough money for social participation and...
Jan 8, 201920 minConsequences of cuts 2010-2018I wanted to find data on the consequences of Conservative cuts since 2010, in the hope that I might remember some of them to use in...
Jan 27, 20183 minNot another job miracle: the mirage of full employmentAnother quarter-year, another labour market release. Cue the DWP praising itself for record numbers of people in work, and record rates...
Jun 28, 20162 minDemocratic ProcessWhether rightly or wrongly, the government gave the people the choice whether to stay in the EU or leave. Cameron said that he would...
Dec 21, 20133 minGovernment vs Reality – the big societyDear government, Let’s stop talking about what you think happens in theory and start talking about what is happening in reality. In...
Oct 12, 20132 minMinisters don’t get it. Policy should be based on reality, not on misinformationAh Bah. I am sick of hearing about what politicians think, or about what they think the public thinks, or about what the public thinks....
Oct 3, 20133 minThe Contributory PrincipleThere is a debate continuing around the social security system on whether those who have paid in more should get back more when they need...
Aug 19, 20132 minConflicting PoliciesJust as nature takes millions of years to regain diversity after a mass extinction, so neighbourhoods take years, even decades, to build...
Jul 8, 20133 minSomething for nothing culturesI’m getting sick of this ‘something for nothing’ attitude that MPs seem to have regarding social security. They complain about giving...
Jun 24, 20135 minBeveridge PrinciplesWhen Sir William Beveridge wrote his report on social insurance he identified five giant evils: squalor, ignorance, want, idleness and...
Jun 6, 20133 minA week of poverty statisticsIt seems to be a week of poverty. Median income is below its level in 2009-10. Work isn’t a route out of poverty. Being in full-time work...
May 17, 20133 minThe reality of benefit cuts is shockingWhen I first started on disability research, I just saw the numbers. I saw that 40% of ESA claimants told they are fit to work then...
May 14, 20134 minShoukld disabled people be euthanased?Disabled children should be euthanased, according to Cllr Colin Brewer. According to Baroness Warnock, disabled adults should be...
Dec 12, 20122 minBenefits and the BudgetGeorge Osborne has decided that benefits will be up-rated at 1% for the next three years. Previously, they would have been uprated in...
Oct 7, 20123 minDavid Cameron: How we can make life better for disabled peopleThis is a speech made by David Cameron in 2009. “If you or someone you love suffers from a disability, life is going to be hard a lot of...
Sep 18, 20128 minDoes the public really support welfare reform?Welfare Reform has Public on its Side So says one of today’s Telegraph headlines.[1] Against a back-drop of criticisms from the...