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More Than 11 Million Uk Citizens Are Living In Absolute Poverty

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Hymie | 07:15 Thu 07th Sep 2023 | Society & Culture
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Yesterday I posted the above piece of information in a thread – due to 13 years of incompetent Tory governments, there are now more than 11 million UK citizens living in absolute poverty.

The generally accepted definition of Absolute Poverty being – is a condition where household income is below a necessary level to maintain basic living standards (food, shelter, housing), that’s the reality for more than 11 million UK citizens.

Some people responded to my post, pointing out that this was complete nonsense; some even claiming no one is living in poverty – well the link below from the House of Commons Library (poverty statistics, published on 6 April 2023) shows that 11.4 million UK citizens were in absolute low income (absolute poverty) in 2021/2022.

Given the appalling record of the Tory government, that figure is certain to increase for the period 2022/2023.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn07096/
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landF – most ABers probably live in affluent areas of the UK (rarely seeing such unfortunate people, certainly not socialising with them), and ignoring those people sleeping in shop doorways - and as ladybirder points out, we have food-banks for those who need them.
Surely they can’t afford to socialise? Or is a few pints & a burger in Wetherspoons considered poverty?
from the link.
" However poverty may be defined in different ways and there is no single, universally accepted definition".

They cannot even agree how poverty is defined so how can they give a poverty figure?
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Hymie I see lots of people in shop doorways and under arches but theres not 11 million of them.
Landf have you even been to UK or just read about our establishment and poveety
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Ladybirder @ 08 50 "I shouldn't be laughing but I am"
So you think it's funny that there is poverty in the UK .
Let's just hope that you never have to be one of them.
Perhaps it wouldn't be so funny ..then.
I suspect they are laughing at the ludicrous nature of the claim. Clearly definitions are wrong.

We have under 68M people in the UK, clearly 1 in 7 is not in poverty nor sleeping in doorways. We have a welfare state that caters for many, and charities that help those you can't or won't seek help.
There will always be people in "poverty" because it is a comparative measure. Just to illustrate: everybody's income could double tomorrow and there would still be exactly the same number of people in poverty. To demonstrate further how pointless such a measure is, look at this passage from the Resolution Foundation report the Commons paper refers to:

"Relative poverty is set to fall considerably in 2022-23 and 2023-24, as typical income falls by more than that of low-income households,

So everybody will have lower incomes, but the number in "poverty" will fall (because those on lower incomes will see a smaller reduction). So using that concept, if everybody enjoying higher than 60% of the (median) average has their income reduced (whilst leaving the others untouched) it will reduce the numbers allegedly in poverty! Yet those people will have the same income as before.

The "absolute" figure you quote is nothing of the sort. There is nothing absolute about it as it is a similar comparative measure (measuring against the median income some years ago instead of the current year).

These figures are completely meaningless. All they do is demonstrate that some people enjoy a higher income than others (which, of course, they always have and always will). I don't know why the government insists on publishing them as a measure of "poverty" because they take no account of what people can afford to do with their level of income. Of course those with a lower income will have less to spend than those with a higher one. But you only need to attend the University of the Bleeding Obvious for a fortnight to be able to work that out.
So if its true, what do you propose we should do about it? Give lots of money to those people in 'poverty'? It's alright coming out with these big grand statements but what would YOU do about it if you were in charge?
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//I will make people with Education to respect People without Education.
It is resolution of poverty problem.//

Really?

Here are a trio of people without much education:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Mullins

"Mullins is the son of a factory worker father and his mother who worked as a cleaner. When he was born, they "lived in a couple of rooms in Camden", before moving to the Rockingham Estate in London's Elephant and Castle, where he grew up, and left school at 15 with no qualifications."

Mr Mullins founded Pimlico Plumbers in 1979. In September 2021, he sold a 90% shareholding of the company to US home services group Neighborly in a deal worth between £125 million and £145 million.

https://www.biography.com/business-leaders/richard-branson

"Sir Richard Branson, who struggled with dyslexia, had a hard time with educational institutions. He nearly failed out of the all-boys Scaitcliffe School, which he attended until the age of 13. He then transferred to Stowe School, a boarding school in Stowe, Buckinghamshire, England. Still struggling, Branson dropped out at the age of 16."

You don't need me to tell you hoe Sir Richard made a success of his life.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duncan_Bannatyne

"Duncan Bannatyne was born in Dalmuir west of Glasgow. His father worked in the foundry at the Clydebank Singer plant. As a child, he lived in one room with his parents and siblings in a large house shared with six other families. He only enjoyed PE and woodwork at the High School and left at 15 without any qualifications. His business career began almost immediately after his move to Stockton-on-Tees with an ice cream van purchased for £450.
he sold the ice cream business and moved into running care homes. He expanded into health clubs, with the Bannatyne Health Club & Spa chain to his name. His wealth as of 2018, was estimated at £280 million by the Sunday Times Rich List."

There are plenty more where they came from. Do you believe they are not respected by people with education? Your notion is too simplistic. A good education is an advantage, but success can be found without it. It requires hard work and application.
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either that NJ, or the deep morons ;)
Seems odd that thousands of people choose to risk their necks to cross the channel to live with 11 million in poverty.
//Yes, I am telling you,
That they are not respected by people with Education.//

Your statement is too sweeping. Some with education might not respect those without, but most do. I have a reasonable education as have most of my friends and acquaintances. No of them to my knowledge show disrespect for people simply on the basis of their education.
maybe Hymie can explain this graph showing poverty levels in UK since 1995.
I'm sure those in poverty in 2023 would be shocked to see what true poverty was when are granparents were growing up

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