You could argue that the reason young men and women are starving is because of the system...but then again, we are part of the system.
How many of you can honestly say that you have sat down with the men under your command and discussed their finances? I remember once talking to one of my guys (who was hopelessly overdrawn) how to manage a bank account. He remarked that he couldn't possibly be overdrawn as he had 6 cheques left in his cheque book !!!!!!!
It is the Officers who should feel ashamed not the MOD.
Bit of a sweeping generalisation there don't you think? Yes, as officers we should look after the welfare and administration of those we lead. However, that doesn't mean spoon feeding them. The RAF is generally thought to attract the more intelligent elements from the broader pool of applicants the the Services; we expect them to demonstrate that intelligence in their daily duties and on operations. And in the majority of cases, they live up to those expectations.
Some however, will never live up to the expectations of a little bit of intelligence and common sense. Is it the fault of the officers as a whole? Well maybe - if we haven't done our job to train these people or bring them on when we spot weaknesses. However, in some cases, certain individuals serve no purpose in the military other than to act as a warning to others. You can lead them, instruct them, if necessary order them all day and night and it still wouldn't sink in. How on earth are you supposed to deal with that?
This whole point though, still doesn't change the fact that PAYD is a poorly thought out, woefully executed commercial operation that has no part to play in the daily life of any of the armed forces. It merely exists to make money out of a captive audience and generate a few more medals and titles for those - who should know better - that are involved in its introduction. If the RAF wants to go into business, it should stick to flogging lunchboxes and bikinis rather than exploiting its personnel for commercial gain.