It’s because the Government give better benefits too easily for people who are too lazy to go out and look for work.

I know of several young teenagers who purposefully got pregnant in the belief (from examples shown by their own parents and friends who are young mothers) of how easy it is to have their own home with multiple benefits living off tax payers money with ‘parental’ status. I also know people who ‘claim’ to be single parents in order to gain more benefits.

Friends with young children who have tried to gain employment to work for their own money were actually advised by Citizens Advice Bureau that they are financially better off claiming benefits than taking on part-time/full-time employment. So to some extent I can understand (but not agree with) why people are wanting to take the easy way in life seeing as the Government make it so easy for them. Why bother busting a gut on minimum wage to pay rent, taxes, childminders and other living expenses and barely have enough disposable income at the end of the week/month when you can sit back and watch other people work the next 50 years of their lives to support their easy lifestyle?

Having worked for a Housing Association I have experienced people demanding it is “their right” to be given a home as they have “just become pregnant” as well as people who play the “disability card” on examples such as ‘panic attacks when at work therefore “allergic” to work’ yet they somehow find the courage to go out every weekend to get drunk from their benefits money.

Young people these days are exposed enough to pregnancy prevention through sex education at school and other means such as magazines, newspapers and internet access to know of the consequences of unprotected sex. I don’t think it’s so much that education on the importance of family units need to be enforced, rather that the Government needs to stop handing out tax payers money so easily to people who want to take the easy way in life and maybe give these benefits to people who actually want to make the effort to EARN their money.

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I take issue with the letter writer’s use of the phrase “fall pregnant”. Pregnancy is not an illness so one doesn’t amazingly “fall” pregnant.

I’m with Mr. Finch – morality should be taught. Pregnancy should only happen when a Mommy and a Daddy love each other very much.

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At last a letter writer who knows where to place the blame – yes the government have broken down the family unit and consequentially morals and values – parents are either no longer home to bring their children up because they’re too busy working all the hours god sends to pay the bills or yes, it doesn’t pay some parents particularly lone parents to work because the wages will not make up what they lose in benefits and increased rent and council tax payments (as demonstrated on last nights bbc programme whereby even celebs are admitting they’d defraud the system in this scenario!)

Businesses struggle with the parent back to work issue because as much as they support it, if mum or dad suddenly have to take time off because Junior is ill how does the work get done then? The business still has to go on for the benefit of everyone working there so does Mr. Boss run the risk of workloads backsliding thus losing customers due to parental absence or does he (quietly and illegally) discriminate against the working parent? It’s a catch 22 for both parent and employer which the government has created and but will not support either party in any practical manner.

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Andrew,

You are quite wrong if you don’t believe that topics such as morality and responsibility are taught in leassons such as PSHE in our schools.

All of the evidence is that many young girls getting pregnant are ignorant of good advice on sexual health and contraception, an ignorance which I’m afraid is aided by the approach of some religious groups.

Fortunately we no longer typically indoctrinate children with religious beliefs in school, preferring to educate properly rather than force a particular narrow view upon them, but I think too many people still have too narrow a definition of what might constitute a viable, successful ‘family’, and somehow believe that morality or ‘family values’ are owned in some way by religions.

It seems to me that all the evidence points to us needing more sex education rather than less.

Like Julie, I despair at young women who fall for the widespread urban myth that having a child is somehow a passport to a better life – they couldn’t be more wrong in most cases, as they find out to their regret.

But what do we do? Can we visit the ‘sins’ of the parents on the children? I don’t think that’s reasonable. Perhaps the answer is to remove any cash component altogether, and ensure that the children are properly provided for, but with direct supply of the items and services they need, thus preventing the money going on other things.

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Also where are these large handouts and the accomodation? have you tried surviving on little over £100 pounds a week, saving a little bit in case your washing machine breaks down, or the oven blows up? even then you know you wont have enough to cover it. what kind of choice is that too make?

As for the accomodation side of things, social housing is there for everyone who needs it, and unless you make yourself homeless as a teenage parent and get moved into a hostel and then get put into a pokey flat with a young baby. there is often a long waiting list of at LEAST 4 years, if your current family home is not overcrowded.

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Dawn – don’t get angry…PB Johnston doesn’t know the difference between rising and lowering, ignores the fact that the rate was
50.6/1000 in 1996 some 4 years before the end of the Married Persons Tax Allowance, chucks in STDs as if it were relevant to his argument rather than supportive of the money spent on contraception opposite view, imagines that ‘old values’ ceased to be taught in 1997 (when clearly if they had it’s had the effect of lowering the rate of teen pregnancies – causality not proven either way natch)….basically not worth getting angry about. Best of luck and enjoy your career.

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@Andrew: I also wonder if chastity is part of the sex education curriculum.

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Nistagmus, Peter, and Dawn…well said. Dawn you are heading into a difficult but worthwhile career where your experiences of life so far and willingness to see beyond the routinely accepted or norms will stand you in good stead. We have a high teenage pregnancy rate in this country for many reasons including poor sex and relationship education. Government and educators want to improve this but the religious/moral minority twist and resist. The consequences are there to be seen, but there are multiple other reasons. That life was simply black and white would be so easy, but this, like other issues is more complex. P B Johnson’s world view is one that does not register with me.

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It would be far more sustainable for you to inform us of your Latin pearls of wisdom, Andrew.

Good post Simon and Dawn, it is a relief that Shropshire has got some residents who have moved on from the dark ages.

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Sack half of them and the rest will have to work harder for less money…….sorry, i seem to have activated Andrew Finches’ automated answer for everything machine.

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spencer said:

“sorry, i seem to have activated Andrew Finches’ automated answer for everything machine.”

Wasn’t that a prototype for the ‘Stuart MkIII Lofty Superiority Generator’? If so I’d be very careful – it’s supposed to be less reliable than a Toyota accelerator……

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Quite so Kath !
What do you think about:

[“A cool thing to do!”]

I,ve always found it makes me quite hot! :)

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“scrap the benefits and bing back the workhouse. onl way people will learn”

It would be nice if they learned to spell.

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i work with pregnant teenagers,most of these girls(there are exceptions to this)just want to love and be loved back,somthing that is lacking not only in their lives but also in the lives of their parents.this is generations worth of damage,no magic wand is going to solve this problem overnight.Speaking from personal experience my sister had her first baby at 17 yrs is now a successful business woman and mother,we shouldn’t just write them all off.

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