Disagree completely. I’m a self employed decorator. I spend £££ on materials, tools, accountancy, I have a tax bill every year, public liability insurance, bought and own a van, so insurance, Road Tax, Fuel, servicing and repairs and MOT. That’s just off the top of my head. Off the back of working, I have disposable income, which I spend. To compare a small business to a benefits cheat is bonkers.
Just putting her crime in context mate. We rightly condemn such people but completely forget about other wrongs of far greater magnitude.
Some unbelievable responses on here, but to be expected sadly. The old but the Tories and comparing it to a self employed person doing the books wow. Deserves all she gets no sympathy.
I wasn’t talking about you exactly but your claim that people “cooking the books” provide more to society despite cheating the system is also wild too. Would imagine over a career multiple self employed people cooking the books will be defrauding the treasury more than the odd outlier benefits cheat.
Yet the people “cooking the books” Will be spending 1000’s a year as highlighted by fitzytyke above which goes into the economy through other means, the benefits cheat whilst spending money as well, will spend significantly less than a self employed person. Also depends on definition of “cooking the books” as highlighted by others.
I was reading some of the comments on Facebook. It’s even worse on there. Some mental gymnastics in order to normalise her actions.
8 grand a year and you’re all wanting to string her up. If the human dragons hoarding all the wealth and selling off all our countries riches to their mates were held accountable and paid their fair share, a country with the wealth of ours would be giving that as UBI. Unfortunately, we are so comprehensively subjugated that there’ll be far more fury at her getting 8 grand a year or an immigrant getting a flat screen tv. “But 8 grand a year is a lot of money to me!” That’s my point, in a country like the UK it shouldn’t be. There’s plenty of money around but it’s going to a hand full of people instead of being shared fairly.
She wasn't exactly robin hood was she. She was a thief stealing 8 grand every year. I'm sure you wouldn't be so forgiving if she was stealing your car every year
She deserves to be in jail, of course. In other news. Putting a metal hat on a person of privilege cost the tax payer £72 million. Tom Moores daughter trousered the proceeds of his book instead of putting it into the charity as he wanted. Along with numerous other greedy dubious decisions including trying to give herself a £150k a year salary. The book deal alone was £1.4m.
Same here, her face as she attended interviews with him was such a tell. Hopefully the charity commission have enough info to be able to pass to the CPS.
That’s the thing mate, you’re speaking from a position of assumption. Just for example. A self employed person can take 20% of their turnover in cash, still pay tax AND easily contribute more to the economy than someone on benefits. It’s an absolute no brainer. I will always stand up for fellow self employed people, HMRC aren’t stupid, and people that push their luck for too long often get pulled in, and rightly so. Anyone that stands on their own two feet, finds their own work, provides an excellent service to the local area, trains others and generally has that bit more ambition gets my full respect.
So just to confirm. If there's a benefit cheat that folk condem, but then compare it to dirty rats who steal millions and millions through the corruption of the system then that's bad. But when someone is jailed for Firestick distribution or being racist and attacking police in a disgraceful riot, then were OK to say BUT WHAT ABOUT THE SOUTHPORT KILLER. That right?
She's a shameless grifter. I'm surprised she hasn't had him stuffed and mounted on a track so she can charge the public to watch him do laps of the garden.
I don't think she should be in jail. I don't think anybody should be in jail for fraud. Jail should be restricted to those who pose a threat to the public. It will already have cost the tax payer far more to investigate and prosecute this woman than she ever stole in benefits. I can live with that, there has to be due process. But I see no benefit at all from spending a heap more money to lock her away. She should pay it back, there should be a lot of community service, but putting her in a prison does not help anything in this situation.
That’s the way I’d look at it, there’s too much of bang em up and forget about the money. Make them repay every penny and lots of community service to inconvenience them. I feel very strongly about these cases because of the hardship they inflict on deserving cases who then have to go to ridiculous lengths to get anything! I’ve got past personal experience of this so I know it’s true ( not for me personally btw)
Is there an amount of money which would warrant a jail sentence in your opinion? Is this ok? community service? https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c844g4kpjxdo
Comparing apples and oranges I feel here. Some one being a benefit cheat is wrong I’m not sure where you think I’m defending that my point was that benefits chests will be an outlier. Yet you seem to be making out that it’s ok for all self employed people to cook the books. Someone who is undertaking tax evasion is wrong that’s what my interpretation of “cooking the books” is which is the term you used - again I’m not aiming at you directly just responding to the terminology you used.