Ron Bannerman

Andrew Neil, "The big problem we face is 6.7 million adults of working, who aren't working, and living on out of work benefits" #BBCQT My view: Andrew Neil’s 6.7 million figure is real, but it does not mean 6.7 million people are able to work and choosing benefits. Of those 6.7 million, 4.6 million, 68%, are not required to look for work, mainly because they are ill, disabled or caring for young children. Of the remaining 2.2 million, many have health conditions that limit what work they can do. Only 71,000 are on Jobseeker’s Allowance. So using the 6.7 million total to imply Britain is full of workshy people is simply wrong.

Helen Whateley explaining the Conservative's latest policy idea of restricting purchases of cigarettes and alcohol for people on benefits on #BBCQT "Supermarkets can have a code which stops people from purchasing a particular (item)" then cites "Aspen cards used by failed asylum seekers" My view: Helen Whately says supermarkets can use a code to stop people buying particular items, then cites ASPEN cards as proof. But ASPEN cards don’t work like that. They’re used by asylum seekers as well as some failed asylum seekers, and their restrictions largely work by merchant type — for example blocking certain categories of business — not by identifying individual products in a supermarket basket. There is currently no ASPEN mechanism that simply spots cigarettes or alcohol among someone’s groceries and refuses those items at the till. And we’re talking about support of around £49 a week, which has to cover basics such as food, clothing and toiletries. So Whately cites an existing system that doesn’t actually do what she says her proposal would do. To make this work, supermarkets would need product-level restrictions, new checkout systems and staff dealing with disputes over what people are allowed to buy. After 14 years of Conservative crackpot ideas in government, here’s another one - this time from opposition.