4:58pm Friday 12th March 2010
May I reply to the letter by Bernard Woolf (Letters, March 4) that suggested we stop all benefits to teach teens the real cost of living. I wish to make the following points: Mr Woolf rightly describes Colombia as a very poor country. It is difficult to imagine how the population can pay so much for education and adult care. Is this for the few and not for the many?
According to the official statistics, there are 3.9 million children in Britain classed as living in poverty. Gordon Brown has described child poverty as “a scar on the soul of Britain”. In 1999, Britain had a higher proportion of children in poverty than any country in Western Europe.
Since then, 600,000 have been lifted above the breadline. We are still at the bottom of the list, only now we share this lowly position with Spain and Italy (The Guardian – Amelia Gentleman, March 18, 2009).
It is tempting to make scapegoats of teenage mothers and immigrants. The latter fall into two groups; they are a cheap source of labour for everyday tasks and they also provide us with many highly-trained professionals, where there is a shortage.
Teenage mothers are often blamed for this country’s ills.
I agree, it is not good to have such a high number of teenage pregnancies, but they are not the cause of the country’s dire financial straits.
The absurd ease with which one can borrow money, the sexualisation of the young, and the general slap-happy approach to so many aspects of living have contributed to a general lowering of standards.
No benefits would simply add to the problems, and there are many, such as lack of decent housing, cut price alcohol, homelessness. We can go on and on ...
Margaret Ashley
Waldegrave Road, Brighton
© Copyright 2001-2012 Newsquest Media Group
http://www.theargus.co.uk/trade_directory/