Quote:
"WHY" are there Foodbanks
So that benefits can be better spent on the "essentials" in life - fags, booze, 50" plasma televisions, Sky subscription, naff bling etc etc.
The simple answer to that is to provide stamps or credits which can only be used for essentials. How much of the benefits money handed out ends up in the hands of loan sharks and utility companies because the poor are on the highest tariff 'pay as you use' meters because they won't pay bills? Before hard cash is given out, the receipients need educating and to demonstrate they can manage it and use it wisely. If the recipients can't prioritise, then the benefits provider should do this.
What makes it worse is that when someone comes off the dole, the benefits stop immediately, leaving the individual to wait a month or more for their first pay packet, thus making them easy pickings for the likes of Wonga as they struggle to make ends meet. Hardly an incentive to get a job.
A mandatory blood test for evidence of drug use before benefits can be received in cash would prevent a lot of it ending up in the hands of dealers.