Everybodys striking for a fair wage!

[fatboy47]

Well, Bank of England Gov Bailey actually tried suggesting people don’t ask for pay rises not too long ago, as that adds to inflation,

Do you actually know how much Bailey earns for basically asking the MPC to vote every few weeks on how best to mismanage the money supply? And do you think there might be the teensy weeniest particle of irony on offer here?

[Nori1958]

How do you discuss the symptoms of a failed economy without mentioning the people who are responsible for it? The subject by its very nature is political.

The OP clearly thought it was possible

[Jakubclaret]

Opportunities are there for anyone willing to work hard enough.

That's bo**ocks circumstantially you are dealt a certain hand in life however you play the cards, it's a fallback retort from the fortunate ones that did get a good hand dealt, some people have no say in the matter however hard they try.

[DCWat]

That's bo**ocks circumstantially you are dealt a certain hand in life however you play the cards, it's a fallback retort from the fortunate ones that did get a good hand dealt, some people have no say in the matter however hard they try.

There are certainly plenty of grafters out there, who work hard their whole lives, yet never achieve much in the way of success, as perceived in the eyes of others.

Never mind that they may be happy, have a lovely family, great friends and enjoy their life, all without being perceived to be a success or having a big wedge in the bank.

I’d argue that those fortunate enough to be in that position are amongst the most successful and fulfilled in life.

[Spiral]

An utter and complete crash in the housing market would be lovely.

[Burnleyareback2]

Spending your school years being disruptive to kids that care, then expecting the world to give you an income is the elephant in the room.

Work hard and you get what you deserve.

[CoolClaret]

Spending your school years being disruptive to kids that care, then expecting the world to give you an income is the elephant in the room.

Work hard and you get what you deserve.

Pig ignorant statement

School system needs an overhaul - kids need skills to land jobs, not learning about f****** Shakespeare & other b0llocks

Decisions you make at 14/16/18 shouldn't cock you up for a decade, it's wrong

[Spiral]

We’re in danger of becoming a nation of haves and have nots and that isn’t good for anyone.

Already there mate. Bloke on this thread is literally breathing life back into pensioners while earning a few pence above a living wage; he and others like him are doing real work so that they can hand over a fat wad of cash every month to an over-indulged and over-protected landlord in order to pay for the lazy prick's holidays to Spain every year. Great system, that is. Perfectly logical, perfectly ethical. Landlords are basically modern day feudal barons, their tenants their serfs. They have too much political sway and their rights to speculate and invest are a drag on the entire system, and as a consequence, people's ability to thrive as human beings. My worry is that Labour under this leadership is too politically cowardly to actually address the elephant in the room, and would rather rearrange deckchairs when in power. So many people in my generation (millennial) have literally resigned to not having kids because it seems impossible and too risky. We don't feel the support structures are there. I'd bloody love to graft by b0llocks off and NOT need support structures to even be in place to have kids, but at the rate it's going I'm not taking chances. Older folks who benefitted from the welfare state and low rent & house prices, basically, those who saw their hard work actually rewarded and are now sitting cosy in retirement, they literally cannot conceive of how miserable it is to resign yourself to not having kids due to the cost/risk of it. All I've known as an adult is financial calamity, pension wipeouts, and ever increasing rent. It's nihilistic. It's fking horrible. At least warfighting generations had someone to shoot at.

[Spiral]

School system needs an overhaul - kids need skills to land jobs, not learning about f****** Shakespeare & other b0llocks

English literature is not b0llocks. Should be encouraged more if anything.

[NewClaret]

An utter and complete crash in the housing market would be lovely.

Sign me up for this. House prices are crazy.

[Spiral]

Sign me up for this. House prices are crazy.

Concerned people would respond, "but you and lots of other people will struggle if that happens", and I'm like, our generation literally made a virtue of necessity when we took the concept of being too skint to eat three square meals a day and reconceptualised it as 'intermittent fasting'. No weetabix in the house? That's okay, now you're doing a fitness goal.

[CoolClaret]

Already there mate. Bloke on this thread is literally breathing life back into pensioners while earning a few pence above a living wage; he and others like him are doing real work so that they can hand over a fat wad of cash every month to an over-indulged and over-protected landlord in order to pay for the lazy prick's holidays to Spain every year. Great system, that is. Perfectly logical, perfectly ethical. Landlords are basically modern day feudal barons, their tenants their serfs. They have too much political sway and their rights to speculate and invest are a drag on the entire system, and as a consequence, people's ability to thrive as human beings. My worry is that Labour under this leadership is too politically cowardly to actually address the elephant in the room, and would rather rearrange deckchairs when in power. So many people in my generation (millennial) have literally resigned to not having kids because it seems impossible and too risky. We don't feel the support structures are there. I'd bloody love to graft by b0llocks off and NOT need support structures to even be in place to have kids, but at the rate it's going I'm not taking chances. Older folks who benefitted from the welfare state and low rent & house prices, basically, those who saw their hard work actually rewarded and are now sitting cosy in retirement, they literally cannot conceive of how miserable it is to resign yourself to not having kids due to the cost/risk of it. All I've known as an adult is financial calamity, pension wipeouts, and ever increasing rent. It's nihilistic. It's fking horrible. At least warfighting generations had someone to shoot at.

I could go on all night but there's few (predominantly baby boomers and their offspring) that grew up in a Country of massive opportunity with as you mentioned a massive safety net, costs of properties relative to wages were massively lower, common amenities were lower relative to wages, everything.

Have people gatekeeping in jobs for years, reluctant to hire those coming out of University despite giving opportunities of their own - leading to no talent coming through because little apprenticeships or ridiculous job demands for absolute unicorn candidates - You should see some of the job spec firm want for Electronic Engineers on a relative pittance:
- PCB design, CAD design, C programming, Java, RF circuit knowledge, Python, analog/digital circuit design skills etc etc for like 32K a year,

where the ******* recruiters that place them will get more money in doing so despite not adding any real value, knowing **** all about engineering bar being able to highlight a few buzzwords or something.

Far too many bullshit middle man jobs, commercial surveyors all that junk, a proper paper tiger economy.

They think in the UK by 2026 20% of the engineering workforce is set to be retired, or close to retirement (actual engineers btw, not people that do the gas and call themselves an engineer), it's staggering - this nation is f******

[CoolClaret]

English literature is not b0llocks. Should be encouraged more if anything.

It's hardly useful for someone that's 14 is it, bit of literacy of course but we need to teach skills that pay.

[Swizzlestick]

Spending your school years being disruptive to kids that care, then expecting the world to give you an income is the elephant in the room.

Work hard and you get what you deserve.

Absolute nonsense and a myth that has perpetuated for decades.

[DCWat]

It's hardly useful for someone that's 14 is it, bit of literacy of course but we need to teach skills that pay.

Surely the purpose of a broad based curriculum is to help identify different skill sets, thus allowing individuals to identify areas of interest whilst developing a wider knowledge base. This in theory should help them to develop their learning styles and apply that learning in the ‘real world’.

Making life choices at a young age isn’t easy for many - I wonder how many are actually in a career that they actually planned to be in as a youngster. Probably a large minority.

What skills that pay are you suggesting should be taught, do you mean practical ones for those that are less academic and vice versa, pigeon holing individuals at a young age?

[CoolClaret]

Surely the purpose of a broad based curriculum is to help identify different skill sets, thus allowing individuals to identify areas of interest whilst developing a wider knowledge base. This in theory should help them to develop their learning styles and apply that learning in the ‘real world’.

Making life choices at a young age isn’t easy for many - I wonder how many are actually in a career that they actually planned to be in as a youngster. Probably a large minority.

What skills that pay are you suggesting should be taught, do you mean practical ones for those that are less academic and vice versa, pigeon holing individuals at a young age?

Agreed with your first point.

Second point, probably a tiny minority.

Third point:
Yes,I think a lot of kids get thrown under the bus and left to rot when they could be learning something that's a bit more tangible.

For example, boys are doing a lot worse in school than girls but it's pretty obvious, at least to me why. Guarantee if more applied subjects were taught that went towards actually creating something and more 'hands on' vs abstract ideas and theory you'd see less people leaving school with a cloud around their heads and struggling for hours at a frigging supermarket for example

Whilst not perfect, I think the German three tier school system makes WAYYYY more sense than what we have right now and is something we should look towards implementing/

[DCWat]

Agreed with your first point.

Second point, probably a tiny minority.

Third point:
Yes,I think a lot of kids get thrown under the bus and left to rot when they could be learning something that's a bit more tangible.

For example, boys are doing a lot worse in school than girls but it's pretty obvious, at least to me why. Guarantee if more applied subjects were taught that went towards actually creating something and more 'hands on' vs abstract ideas and theory you'd see less people leaving school with a cloud around their heads and struggling for hours at a frigging supermarket for example

Whilst not perfect, I think the German three tier school system makes WAYYYY more sense than what we have right now and is something we should look towards implementing/

Selected within the first four years of education (quick Google, I might add) seems extremely young to be identifying a child’s potential for one path or another.

[Spiral]

It's hardly useful for someone that's 14 is it, bit of literacy of course but we need to teach skills that pay.

The one single thing that separates humans from other animals, and indeed robots, is reflexivity — the ability of the mind to reflexively observe its own operations and patterns of thought. We do this through language, and someone skilled in language is better capable of pressing the abstract into form, turning feeling into thought, and organising those thoughts coherently. The by-product of honing this skill is intelligence. Literature as a field of study is basically a like a gym workout for the matrix-like structure underlaying the higher cognitive faculties. The fruits of this can be applied in endless ways, but in a sentence, you're developing cognitive skills that teach you how to teach yourself. Compare that to other rote skills which are more restricted in application. The benefits of English lit are not immediately obvious, but reflexive critical awareness develops through it. Find the most capable employees in any workplace: the most measured, competent and capable will often (though not always, I admit) be better-read, even if their literariness has no immediate or direct application to their work. I've seen this with my own eyes.

Also, ever met a library-dweller in high school who was a bully? Nah, me neither. Lit makes for better rounded people, I think. Aristocratic ancient Greeks were schooled in mythology. It was through myth (their 'literature' such as it was) that they learned ethics. Modern aristocrats in Britain, as well as swathes of the middle class, aggressively encourage literature for similar reasons — the parents know it gives their kids an advantage over those who don't read. This positive attitude towards reading is less prevalent among working class folks. I say that as a working class person. It's got nothing to do with exhaustion or a lack of leisurely time. As someone who was not remotely well off growing up, I think that's a bull$hit excuse people make. It's less about free time, and more about what you prioritise during what time you have. Again, this I have also seen with my own eyes. I don't think it's a coincidence that there's a big crossover between people who can't spell for $hit and scoff at reading, and people who, I don't know, join the EDL and start fights with their neighbours every weekend and generally are a drag on everyone else's happiness.

I wonder if there are any English lit teachers on here who would care to back me up on this?

[Stanbill05]

Whilst not perfect, I think the German three tier school system makes WAYYYY more sense than what we have right now and is something we should look towards implementing/

Agree. More importantly, German society respects trade skill, apprenticeships and engineers far more than we do, which is why they are better.

[CoolClaret]

Selected within the first four years of education (quick Google, I might add) seems extremely young to be identifying a child’s potential for one path or another.

I never said it was perfect nor to separate after four years - I mean to implement a system where those that are less academically inclined can learn a real hands on trade or whatever, than to be seen as ‘no good’ because they fail to see the importance or application of trying to interpret what a 16th century author may or may not have implied with his works

[CoolClaret]

Agree. More importantly, German society respects trade skill, apprenticeships and engineers far more than we do, which is why they are better.

Yep and have more protection on their wages through being a protected class of worker, unlike they are here in the UK.

Engineering particularly gripes me here with the afterthought it is shown by our political/ruling class.

[CoolClaret]

The one single thing that separates humans from other animals, and indeed robots, is reflexivity — the ability of the mind to reflexively observe its own operations and patterns of thought. We do this through language, and someone skilled in language is better capable of pressing the abstract into form, turning feeling into thought, and organising those thoughts coherently. The by-product of honing this skill is intelligence. Literature as a field of study is basically a like a gym workout for the matrix-like structure underlaying the higher cognitive faculties. The fruits of this can be applied in endless ways, but in a sentence, you're developing cognitive skills that teach you how to teach yourself. Compare that to other rote skills which are more restricted in application. The benefits of English lit are not immediately obvious, but reflexive critical awareness develops through it. Find the most capable employees in any workplace: the most measured, competent and capable will often (though not always, I admit) be better-read, even if their literariness has no immediate or direct application to their work. I've seen this with my own eyes.

Also, ever met a library-dweller in high school who was a bully? Nah, me neither. Lit makes for better rounded people, I think. Aristocratic ancient Greeks were schooled in mythology. It was through myth (their 'literature' such as it was) that they learned ethics. Modern aristocrats in Britain, as well as swathes of the middle class, aggressively encourage literature for similar reasons — the parents know it gives their kids an advantage over those who don't read. This positive attitude towards reading is less prevalent among working class folks. I say that as a working class person. It's got nothing to do with exhaustion or a lack of leisurely time. As someone who was not remotely well off growing up, I think that's a bull$hit excuse people make. It's less about free time, and more about what you prioritise during what time you have. Again, this I have also seen with my own eyes. I don't think it's a coincidence that there's a big crossover between people who can't spell for $hit and scoff at reading, and people who, I don't know, join the EDL and start fights with their neighbours every weekend and generally are a drag on everyone else's happiness.

I wonder if there are any English lit teachers on here who would care to back me up on this?

I’m not decrying literature as a whole Spiral, far from it - have book clubs and what not but doing essays on random books that kids have no interest in learning? Surely the time could be spent doing something better.

Take a music or an art class for example, why aren’t we teaching photography or getting people creating by making things fun?!

You can get day one musicians creating music by giving them some percussion and teaching them basic time - you could have a class of 20 doing an African polyrhythmic style music after a couple of days - what better way to introduce the subject?… vs ‘sit at your keyboard. Here is middle c, here is the treble clef, here is the bass clef, here’s how you play three blind mice’ do me a favour

(Just to add I think ethics and philosophy should be higher prioritised and taught way more and from it you can garner much of the benefits that you purported from literature)

[Spiral]

...than to be seen as ‘no good’ because they fail to see the importance or application of trying to interpret what a 16th century author may or may not have implied with his works

If you're referring to Shakespeare with that (I'm going to assume you are), studying his plays is an exercise in cultural indoctrination.

[Spiral]

I’m not decrying literature as a whole Spiral, far from it ...(clipped)

Some fair points. It's easy to interpret what you said earlier as a disregard for humanities subjects. The problem with this disregard from a class perspective is that culture becomes annexed to the well-to-do who can afford to send their kids to private schools that value it, and this can cause social problems because in time working class folks essentially become pliant drones. It frames the way people think about themselves and the limits of their existence so say at such a young age, "this is clearly not for you, do this instead". Even if someone is struggling with English lit, it should still be taught to them, because it might just be a case that they're behind a bit, not that they'll never learn anything from it.

[CoolClaret]

Some fair points. It's easy to interpret what you said earlier as a disregard for humanities subjects. The problem with this disregard from a class perspective is that culture becomes annexed to the well-to-do who can afford to send their kids to private schools that value it, and this can cause social problems because in time working class folks essentially become pliant drones. It frames the way people think about themselves and the limits of their existence so say at such a young age, "this is clearly not for you, do this instead". Even if someone is struggling with English lit, it should still be taught to them, because it might just be a case that they're behind a bit, not that they'll never learn anything from it.

My points were made of getting kids ready for the real world which with every passing day is requiring more and more specialisation and hard skills.

With regards to the humanities, I went to some very good schools and had a lot of humanities, I just do think that something that’s subjective maybe the death by assignment/exam/essay approach isn’t the correct one. Especially to those that aren’t interested or academically inclined

[Spiral]

Yeah, thanks for elaborating a bit, I appreciate that. When you referred to Eng lit as b0llocks I thought you were dismissing it in the way people also dismiss algebra as being useless.

[DCWat]

I never said it was perfect nor to separate after four years - I mean to implement a system where those that are less academically inclined can learn a real hands on trade or whatever, than to be seen as ‘no good’ because they fail to see the importance or application of trying to interpret what a 16th century author may or may not have implied with his works

Do we not have that?

Apprenticeships seem to becoming more popular again.

When my other half’s nephew was leaving school a couple of years back, there were a variety of apprenticeship opportunities or college options for him to go for.

To his credit, he was very driven and proactive in finding an apprenticeship.

Learning attained from the core subjects will still be of huge benefit to those taking up a practical skill, when it comes to the theory of the chosen path.

I don’t disagree that there should be plenty of options and opportunities to develop the skills for a practical career, just as there should be for those who may not be practical, nor hugely academic - there is a raft of people sat within this category who probably aren’t even considered.

These opportunities should (and I assume they must be to some degree) be weighted towards careers with anticipated growth and longevity, but we also need thriving industry to create the jobs.

With an apparent upward trend in stress and anxiety, I think education also has a huge part to play in developing a level of emotional resilience through the teaching of real life skills - budgeting, financial planning, health and well-being etc.

Thinking back to my days at school, the only real life skill I recall us being taught was cooking and I’ve not made a bloody upside down pineapple cake since!

[It Is What It Is]

People have a choice... its what they signed up for.
If they are not happy...move on...just dont hold
the public to ransom.

[Spiral]

People have a choice... its what they signed up for.
If they are not happy...move on...just dont hold
the public to ransom.

Yeah, how dare people stand up for themselves.

Christ almighty. Nobody ever won a race to the bottom, you do know that, right?

BTW, I'm of 'the public', and I support them, and because there's no unified consensus on the public's attitude towards it, it cannot be invoked as an attack. When you say "don't hold the public to ransom", what you actually mean is "don't inconvenience me".

[CoolClaret]

Do we not have that?

Apprenticeships seem to becoming more popular again.

When my other half’s nephew was leaving school a couple of years back, there were a variety of apprenticeship opportunities or college options for him to go for.

To his credit, he was very driven and proactive in finding an apprenticeship.

Learning attained from the core subjects will still be of huge benefit to those taking up a practical skill, when it comes to the theory of the chosen path.

I don’t disagree that there should be plenty of options and opportunities to develop the skills for a practical career, just as there should be for those who may not be practical, nor hugely academic - there is a raft of people sat within this category who probably aren’t even considered.

These opportunities should (and I assume they must be to some degree) be weighted towards careers with anticipated growth and longevity, but we also need thriving industry to create the jobs.

With an apparent upward trend in stress and anxiety, I think education also has a huge part to play in developing a level of emotional resilience through the teaching of real life skills - budgeting, financial planning, health and well-being etc.

Thinking back to my days at school, the only real life skill I recall us being taught was cooking and I’ve not made a bloody upside down pineapple cake since!

Now, I’m not speaking for every apprenticeship here, but a lot that I say and have witnessed are a good way in which for a firm to get away with paying employees a lot less than what they ought to be paid whilst not really receiving much in return.

Agreed about finances and other important life skills - this sort of stuff just isn’t taught in school what so ever and we wonder why so many struggle.

I will reiterate though- my point was more making it like look, you need hard skills. Take someone for example that wants to be a video editor now and maybe work on some high budget tv shows.

Now an approach way back when would try to get an internship at a top film house or whatever but these days you can literally learn with a good course then get to it…

Does it really require 2-4 years at college then another three doing some sort of degree where you’re tasked with doing a bunch of things other than the thing that really matters the most? Learning how to actually edit, color grade etc etc.

The only thing that gets you good at anything is reputation and doing it yourself.

You could learn the basics of color grading and clipping videos together and be good to go after a hard few months of graft and ready to take up a role for example at channel four doing basic edits.

With experience you’d work your way up to more prestigious edits etc

I just think the focus where we really are missing out on right now is hard skills. People are doing all this education even up to A-level and even degree and struggle to land jobs from it.

That’s just not right is it?

(Film editing just an example, could apply to writing code - not everyone has to learn compsci in depth for three years, not to mention the tech is evolving faster than exam boards etc can keep up with!)

[dsr]

Pig ignorant statement

School system needs an overhaul - kids need skills to land jobs, not learning about f****** Shakespeare & other b0llocks

Decisions you make at 14/16/18 shouldn't cock you up for a decade, it's wrong

Grammar schools and secondary moderns, perhaps? I wouldn't disagree, but you'll struggle to make that popular in education at present.

[Stockbrokerbelt]

Never have I seen a more gutless reaction to the workers being screwed by a group of corrupt idiots who consider themselves way above the same people who vote for them. You’re services are on the floor, your healthcare & dental care are in utter chaos, high inflation & mortgage payments due to an inept government. The UK can’t even get fresh fruit & veg without blaming a European neighbour’s weather, which is a total lie. The laughing stock of Europe.

[CoolClaret]

Never have I seen a more gutless reaction to the workers being screwed by a group of corrupt idiots who consider themselves way above the same people who vote for them. You’re services are on the floor, your healthcare & dental care are in utter chaos, high inflation & mortgage payments due to an inept government. The UK can’t even get fresh fruit & veg without blaming a European neighbour’s weather, which is a total lie. The laughing stock of Europe.

Spot on mate

[Jakubclaret]

There are certainly plenty of grafters out there, who work hard their whole lives, yet never achieve much in the way of success, as perceived in the eyes of others.

Never mind that they may be happy, have a lovely family, great friends and enjoy their life, all without being perceived to be a success or having a big wedge in the bank.

I’d argue that those fortunate enough to be in that position are amongst the most successful and fulfilled in life.

I agree there for sure, they'll be plenty of people already suffering with soaring costs & mounting debt it's a perfect storm for mental health problems such as depression & anxiety & I daresay the suicide rate will go up as a result, people can appear fine on the outside but inside is completely different, you never really know what's going on in people's heads unless you speak to them & even then that's not guaranteed.

[Dyched]

Too young to know but in past decades 70s/80s/90s did people spend a decent amount equivalent to what people do now on things such as Smart Phones, Sky, Netflix, etc etc.

Seems to me those are really luxury products that a lot of people generally have nowadays.

[boatshed bill]

There's something very wrong with this country when people in full time employment are having to use food banks.

[Lancasterclaret]

Grammar schools and secondary moderns, perhaps? I wouldn't disagree, but you'll struggle to make that popular in education at present.

Thats just elitist rubbish dsr

If you make sure that education is funded correctly, then you'll have good state schools

I went to an all boys grammar, and it was s**t

My kids go to the local state school and its far better (but not as good as it was sadly, because of education is no longer funded adequately and its more of a struggle)

Spiral and Cool both make excellent points

Regarding housing and damage that boomers and Generation Z have done, well, you just can't argue against it with anything evidence based

I'm 50 now, and I always vote for the future, not for some self serving idea what might make my life even more comfortable in retirement

[Nori1958]

Too young to know but in past decades 70s/80s/90s did people spend a decent amount equivalent to what people do now on things such as Smart Phones, Sky, Netflix, etc etc.

Seems to me those are really luxury products that a lot of people generally have nowadays.

No mobile phone contracts to pay for, or sky, netflix etc, families only had one car, not as many holidays...more people smoked and drunk...didn't seem much cash left at end of month, so to be able to pay for the things everyone has nowadays wages must be relatively higher than 70/80s

[evensteadiereddie]

You'd damn well hope that things would improve over the years with each generation being better off than the last.
Over the last couple of years and for the foreseeable future, that is clearly not going to happen unless, particularly, people who have simply been taken advantage of over the past few years fight back.
We are the poor man of Europe, falling behind in most indicators of what constitutes a standard of living yet people are too blind or stupid to do something about it.

[Nori1958]

There's something very wrong with this country when people in full time employment are having to use food banks.

You'd have to ask them what they spend their wages on before leaping to any judgement

[bfcjg]

https://www.nationaldebtclock.co.uk/
As a nation we see technically skint, we can't just keep borrowing and kicking the can down the road ,what do we do when the lenders stop, print cash and get 20-30 % inflation and the situation gets worse.
In order to fund decent public services we have to pay more tax,stop corporate tax dodgers ,get industrial productivity up and slash beurocratic red tape. I'd happily pay more tax to fund decent wages for teachers,NHS staff and certainly those underpaid stalwarts in the care industry.

[milkcrate_mosh]

https://www.nationaldebtclock.co.uk/
As a nation we see technically skint, we can't just keep borrowing and kicking the can down the road ,what do we do when the lenders stop, print cash and get 20-30 % inflation and the situation gets worse.
In order to fund decent public services we have to pay more tax,stop corporate tax dodgers ,get industrial productivity up and slash beurocratic red tape. I'd happily pay more tax to fund decent wages for teachers,NHS staff and certainly those underpaid stalwarts in the care industry.

Why would people stop lending money to an institution that can print it's own money? Government "debt" can't really be looked at like the debt a private individual or company would take on.

Nearly every major economy has a government that has run almost exclusively on a deficit over the last 50 years. Pretending they have to "balance the books" like a household creates an artificial constraint on government investment and is a huge part of the reason we're in the mess we're in at the moment.

[Hipper]

I earn £15 an hour on average, which for what's basically an unskilled job, so I'm happy with that.

I've earned less in skilled jobs.

I find the issue today is the housing market being out of control price wise but no government seems willing to get a handle on it.
Rent/mortgage is the biggest expense people have

Average wage is £26k ish, average house price around £300k and that's gone up £17k in a year.

That's a very big difference and the issue needs addressing, but whilst house builders intentionally control the numbers being built then nothing will change.

According to this average wages are £630/week - £32,760/year gross I assume (no taxes etc.).

https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlab ... rnings-awe

You are right about the housing market. Rents where I live have shot up from £1,200/month to £1,350, maybe £1,500. The suggestion is that because of changes for the buy to let people landlords are selling property so less property to rent. The plus may be that property prices should go down, but will they (when I moved here in 1992 most of the flats were owner/occupied. Now it's only ten of forty-nine)?

[bfcjg]

Why would people stop lending money to an institution that can print it's own money? Government "debt" can't really be looked at like the debt a private individual or company would take on.

Nearly every major economy has a government that has run almost exclusively on a deficit over the last 50 years. Pretending they have to "balance the books" like a household creates an artificial constraint on government investment and is a huge part of the reason we're in the mess we're in at the moment.

Inflation devalues your currency ,

[Stayingup]

I see that the train drivers are going on strike on Cup Final day. Two Manchester teams. Really thoughful of them that. Maybe they are all Arsenal fans!! If I was City and United I would lobby the FA to get the venue moved up to the north.

[Stayingup]

You'd have to ask them what they spend their wages on before leaping to any judgement

I see. The answer would probably be paying the energy bills and feeding and clothing their children. Having to use feed banks is a national disgrace. The headlong rush to Net Zero the cause. Its a poltitical joke being executed - till it falls apart that is - by a bunch of jokers.