Bedroom Tax

[marje]

So, there's been a suicide because of the 'bedroom tax'. Poor woman couldn't afford the £80 per month for 2 empty bedrooms when her children left home. How many more before it's abolished?

[emmie]

if more people take this route, what will your responses be then, all mentally ill, unstable, or just pushed to the edge.

[albaqwerty]

My taxes are helping to support people who are on benefits

oh yes, let's have another dig at those over 50 who have been made redundant.

[jim360]

Very possibly I would say that, though each would have to be looked at case-by-case.

[emmie]

alba, some seem to think that those on benefits now never worked, what a laugh eh...

[Mamyalynne]

There are so many strands to this case and we only know what we have read - strikes me that this lady had slipped through the net, she had Myasthenia gravis, which is I believe a quite debilitating condition, her GP had said she was unfit for work, yet she was not registered as disabled either for extra financial help or the awareness of the council when offering new and suitable properties.

Do we point the finger of blame at anyone or a group of people, should her children have helped to get her registered thereby maybe securing a better and safer place to live, the GP for not contacting someone or the Solihull Council Labour group leader David Jamieson, who knows the family (before or after the fact I do not know) ?

It is a tragedy all round and has devastated at least two families, her own and of course the lorry driver. whether we can pick the bones out of this sorry mess and come to a simple resolution is doubtful.

[Octavius]

"I think that this woman and her son deserve some measure of sympathy and not to have her stated motives and reasons picked over and analysed."

But it was them that publicised the stated motives for public scrutiny. And whilst I offer some sympathy to the people left behind, including her 1 year old grandson who she deined to compose a note for, I think it was a very selfish thing to do and could have potentially caused further tragedy, loss of lives and loved ones on the motorway.

[albaqwerty]

exactly Em

chrtles me off when those say all claimants are scroungers.

Walk a mile in my shoes (and all that)

If my sons move out, then I'm hit for the bedroom tax, ugh

[ladybirder]

Who is saying all benefits claimants are scroungers?

[Sharingan]

I agree completely if you are going to kill yourself you should never do so in a way whereby you might injure anyone else doing so.

[emmie]

alba, there you go, sympathy by some on here is definitely in short supply.

[lcg]

thinking about suicide and/or trying to kill yourself does not always mean you are mentally unwell....if you worked as a professional in the field of mental health, you would understand this - it is a key point that is discussed when assessing somebody's risk, diagnosis and detainability under the law. we discharge people from hospital all the time who are experiencing suicidal thoughts. that may seem strange to you, but if we didn't, there would be oodles of people in hospital for the rest of their lives. life just isn't that perfect, i'm afraid.

and if you are feeling suicidal, you do not always consider all avenues open to you. that is just you in your rational mind thinking about somebody else's problems. it seems like the best solution at a particular point in your life. i also fail to understand how anyone can call someone who is suicidal or has attempted suicide (no matter how) selfish. they are not selfish.....they do not go out of their way to make other people's lives difficult or traumatic, but it is an unfortunate side effect of the act itself. i find it incredibly patronising, stigmatising and narrow minded that it can be considered as such. next you'll be saying depressed people need to pull their socks up or something. unbelievable.

[albaqwerty]

Mama, as ever the voice of reason. x

I feel for the lorry driver and his family. Poor man will be having flashbacks for the rest of his life

The whole situation is a sorry mess.

[woofgang]

mamalynne there is no longer a generic "registration as disabled" I have no idea what this lady may have been offered or refused to accept or maybe what she requested and was turned down for but I do agree with you that the story as told is being used politically.

[woofgang]

great post lcg

[Mamyalynne]

My Council has a facility whereby you can 'register' as such your disabilities, albeit it may only be for statistical purposes so they know how many vulnerable people they have in the borough.

[Sharingan]

Thank you lcg, that is beautifully put.

[jim360]

Selfishness is putting one's self before others. Which is certainly what anyone advocating "my body, my decision" is doing. Again, what about the consequences of those who knew you? Goodness only knows what it must be like for this woman's son. I have my own experiences to confirm some of what you said, particularly:

"...if you are feeling suicidal, you do not always consider all avenues open to you. that is just you in your rational mind thinking about somebody else's problems. it seems like the best solution at a particular point in your life."

Selfishness isn't necessarily a bad thing, though. At times in the past it was a necessary survival tactic. I don't see, though, that it is controversial to say that, in this case, there were better ways for her to have committed suicide. Or, that, it wasn't strictly speaking necessary.

And, therefore, to answer the question in the thread: it will not be abolished, and this case should not be used to judge that. I still think the new rules are ill-thought through, but this case is not a measure of that.

[lcg]

i give in.....

[Mamyalynne]

I am in private rented and as such have been hit with this extra financial burden for some years now, but I love my home and manage to scrape by , I know not everyone can. When my husband died in 2008 it looked like I would lose my tenancy after over 30 years (mix up re the tenancy agreement) at that time it would have broke my heart even more than it already was , thankfully understanding landlords who accepted me as a good and loyal tenant I am still in the place I love.

[emmie]

people fall through the benefit net all the time, in the same way they fall through the net of any care from the the mental health services, these are stretched to capacity and it's getting harder and harder to get help. The benefit system is and has been a very complex situation, ask anyone who has ever had to fill in one of their forms, the DLA one in particular, it's one of the reasons some get financial help when they need it, daunted by endless forms, or just not sure where to go for help with filling them in.