General Chat

Rollo ...............

once again, you don't know everything!!!

The RCMP do not police Vancouver, or most other big cities, not even Calgary.

Vancouver has it's own police force, and they have become well known in the last 10 or 20 years for being VERY benign and caring, especially with the homeless and down-and-outs, the addicts, etc..

It's also not easy 'just' letting a room in your house to a stranger!!

I'll ask you one question - would you let a stranger drive your car?
If not, why not. You won't be in it, so your life won't be in danger.
It's only a car - why so 'precious' about it?

If you wouldn't let a stranger drive your car - why would you expect anyone else to 'take in' a stranger into their house? The place where they sleep.
Strangely, some of us value our lives, property, sanity and peace of mind!

Also, if you took in a lodger when you're unemployed, you'd lose benefit/JSA - and end up paying a higher amount in bills!! You'd be no better off.

As for Tax credits - the likelihood of a single person getting them are negligible.

1) You can't live in a 'Universal Credit' area. Well, I do, but when I wasn't working, I wasn't entitled to Universal Credit. Don't know where that leaves me!!

2) You must qualify for pension credit - well, you can't get that until you retire!

I did the online 'are you entitled to Tax Credits - said my income was below £13,100 between 2015 - 2016 - the reply:
You probably qualify for tax credits if any of the following apply:
##you have 3 or more children
##you don’t live in a Universal Credit area
##you or your partner qualify for Pension Credit

So, I wouldn't get it - and you get very little help - no Housing Benefit, no Tax Credits if you're under 25!

....and living on £13,100 a year is not easy.

Hence the increase in homelessness.

Ididnt want to start a big debate but was just shocked at the difference in the city to 6months ago when i last visited,im always in liverpool and can honestly say that this has never happened to me before,its not the zombie drug that become epidemic in the likes of wrexham ,but drink and other drugs,the woman wh where approacing people were very thin,covered in sores,wide eyes,hyperactive and chatty,men unkept and scruffy always with dogs,and yes i agree with some that this couls be profesional begging.(it does happen)but most of this was not.it was truely awful,and has put me off going to liverpool again. and once again,here in anglesey its illigal to walk around drinking alcohol in the street,it does not mean you cant drink in your own gardon in your own property or in a beer garden because a pub beer garden would be licenced.x

We get it in Gloucester and Cheltenham although the actual asking for money does seem to have been stopped. They also uncovered those who were begging and who actually had a home. Several were jailed for persistent begging so, although there are still rough sleepers not so many are blatant beggars and we are asked to give food or a hot drink but not money direct to them.

We have quite a few homeless people in Winchester.
Some are living in tents on the outskirts of the city. I won't say where.
As a LSA in a local primary school, then in the local comprehensive, I have watched 4 children's lives being destroyed.
They are adults now, and homeless - have been for a while - only now there's only 3.
Their father was an *rse. he had 2 of the boys (twins) drug-running at 7.
The girl was sexually abused from a very young age.
The children's mother died - things got worse for the children.
Then their father died - they were thrown out of their council house.
As they were then considered 'adults' ie above 17, they were left to their own devices. The Council offered no help.
The girl took to the streets, the boys to theft.
They couldn't 'rustle up' at least a month's rent to get anywhere to live.
They've had quite a few short spells in prison, have been put up in short term accommodation - but nowhere they could call home.
One boy re-located to Basingstoke, I believe.

Danny had had enough, and killed himself.
He was 34 years of age.

I haven't seen Jane for a while....

...and this is in 'posh' Winchester....

The Tory party is an evil dishonest and self serving organisation. It has even given up on its vestigial support for democracy. So long as it holds power poverty and misery for millions will be the rule of the day. Bad as things are they are going to get a whole lot worse.

Don't mince your words, Rollo. :-D

By the way, have you forgotten Tony Blair?

Joy , that's only the usual Rollo response. Liverpool is a Labour stronghold, need I say more

ps I choose to forget Tony Blair and a lot of others too ;-)

And he seems to be sticking his head above the parapet again!

Gawd, talk about brass-necked!

In my opinion, any party that does not have Corbyn, McConnell and Abbott is better than a party that does have them.

Personally, I am looking forward to being in my home town again soon, if only for a few days.

I like Liverpool and usually visit when staying at my daughters in Merseyside. :-D.

I'll second all your comments about Corbyn and his cronies

Sorry, slip of the finger there - McDonnell. :-|

Forgiven ;-) :-D :-D :-D :-D

It is the same here as you describe AnninG. They found some had their own homes but found it lucrative to beg, others were supplementing their benefits. People are told here to give food or a drink, but not give money. The reason some have dogs is for protection against those who would steal what little they have for drugs, drink etc.

This article a few months ago shows less than 10% of the 124 rough sleepers in Liverpool were homeless Suzanne. The rest had their own homes. Many are also travelling into areas to beg.

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/how-many-professional-beggars-liverpool-12581415

London and cities elsewhere have many coming from Romania and I have read they can make up to £100 a day in some affluent London areas. Some live in very bad conditions in their own countries and send money home. Even when they are sent home and their fares paid they intend to come back because they can make so much money here compared with home.

Most of the dogs I have seen with homeless people would be useless for this, they are not aggressive dogs, they are not the breed of dogs likely to BE much protection. They provide company, they provide warmth, but "protection" ?

Don't forget that where it says some refuse offered accommodation it may be because that offer is for a bed in a hostel, which ( if programmes on the subject are to be trusted) many homeless people do not consider safe, a less safe option than the streets... because you could be sleeping next to someone who has mental or drug and alchohol problems.

You have misquoted the article Ann it does not say "This article a few months ago shows less than 10% of the 124 rough sleepers in Liverpool were homeless ...."

it says that "The Mayor said that according to the latest figures, collected for the month of December - there were 124 people begging in the city centre.

But he said less than 10% of those found begging - just 12 people - were genuinely rough sleepers, with others either having homes or refusing the offer of accomodation."

There are professional beggars, no doubt about that, but it is wrong to confuse the two.

Our mayor is currently serving his 3rd term (3 years each term) ......... it is an elected position and he has campaigned each time on reducing (hopefully eliminating) the homeless by providing suitable homes for them all.

By the end of the first term, there had been incredible success in re-homing people living on the street .............. BUT the homeless count was higher than it had been at the start of his term :-S :-0


We are in the unfortunate position of being a) the "Banana Belt" in Canada, and b) welfare may be somewhat easier to obtain than in other provinces (it being one of the many programmes that falls under provincial rather than federal control).

So, people move here from elsewhere ......

a) they may move intending to get a job, but then the pay is poor and rents are high, or it may be impossible for them to get a job, so they end up homeless

b) they move intending to claim welfare and not work, but can't afford rents or have no intention of paying rent, and end up homeless

c) it has been known for social workers in other provinces to give homeless people bus tickets (Greyhound long distance bus) to Vancouver to get them out of their hair and off their list.

d) they have mental and / or addiction problems

Add to this the proportion of people who prefer living on the street and do not want to be housed.

It's a never-ending problem and there never seems to be a solution, despite all the people working to get people into accommodations.

I met a homeless ex- soldier.
He'd been recently discharged from hospital, but didn't want to go to the homeless shelter, as it was being 'run' (terrorised) by a trio of 'homeless' thugs.
Even those in charge were frightened of them.
As I worked in Adult Services at the time, I told him to stay where he was and got an overpaid 'senior', who 'dealt' with the homeless to talk to him - and to face 'frontline' how things were actually 'working'.
The plonker was lost.......

Thank you all fr your interesting comments,
the reason for the post was that i was very shocked by what i saw last week,as ive said "i go to liverpool a lot" but ive never come across so many people stopping shoppers asking for money/ fags .and drinking bottles of wine in the street..

:-( :-(