The Telegraph argues unemployed people shouldn’t be able to vote
The Telegraph has argued that people not in employment shouldn’t be able to vote, including people with disabilities and those who are sick. The paper posits that the “unemployable” should not be allowed “citizen rights”. It argues that increasing welfare payments is “bribery”.
Telegraph — bit extreme?
People with disabilities certainly need to be able to vote because otherwise they have no say in a far right party getting into power. This can have tragic outcomes. The Nazis murdered at least 250,000 people with disabilities from 1939-1945.
The job fairies
It’s standard for the corporate class to go on about unemployment welfare, but it’s a denial of reality.
There aren’t enough jobs for people to become employed, so it’s unclear what the Telegraph is proposing. There are 1.8 million people not in employment in the UK. And there are 9.1 million people economically inactive (also without employment but haven’t looked for a job in three months). That’s 10.9 million people without work.
And how many job vacancies are there? 705,000. That’s over 10 million people, including those who cannot work, the Telegraph expects to become employed at jobs that don’t exist.
Anything that benefits a group could be ‘bribery’
Why are policies that benefit the less well off or people with disabilities considered ‘hand outs’ or ‘bribes’? Meanwhile, policies that benefit the super rich are considered ‘good politics’.
In the 2023/24 year, some government subsidies to corporations totaled £32 billion. And in 2024 Labour announced a further £22 billion bung to the fossil fuel sector for carbon capture projects that don’t work. These could be described as ‘bribes’ to keep corporations on side.
In the UK, 28% of people with disabilities live in poverty — 8% higher than the average. Would lifting those people who cannot work out of poverty be considered a ‘bribe’? Nope, it’s called civilisation.
Featured image via Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
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dur!!
’cause voting makes a difference!?
Stop printing this crap. You’re gaslighting your readers.
Are you part of the problem or part of the solution? As with all your green bullshit and this sort of propaganda, you’re not helping.
Are you organising the resistance are you comrade? An armed revolution? if not, shut up and sit down. Voting is not the be all and end all of democracy but it is certainly an important step.
I read the Telegraph article by Michael Deacon – it was a bit tongue in cheek and was pointing out that this idea was put forward by William Beveridge, that darling of the left who is considered to be the Founder of the UK welfare state. Your article doesn’t seem as though you’ve read the Telegraph piece you’re commenting on. Unless you’re deliberately misrepresenting it?
So, the Labour founder of the welfare state in this country was on record as saying he thought the unemployable shouldn’t get a vote.
So at some point more than 80% of the current UK population will not be able to vote if this was reality. nearly everyone becomes disabled of cares for someone who is. I look forward to your vote being revoked
For his involvement in the welfare state’s actual start, 1911 around the People’s Budget crisis, he could be regarded as a founder. It was for that experience that he later got the 40s task to upgrade the system. Point of distinguishing them is – a media led Tory myth that his 40s task was the welfare state’s start has been responsible for a lot of the media-led generational ego-tripping by old against young, basing on superlative boasts about the 30s a refusal to believe in modern poverty or youth economic exclusion, and voting accordingly. Yet some of the left, labour history types, have shared in this myth because it heroises both a Labour government and the interwar period’s labour struggles. They have by it been useful Tory stooges against modern youth.
Myths of intentional unemployment or softness of dole were the same in the 30s as now, because the position was no longer Victorian because welfare state measures began 1911 for working age, 1909 old age pension. So some richer folks already in the 30s, same as more recently, wished not to believe there was still any genuine poverty.
If you don’t work in the Uk and not English then you shouldn’t be allowed to vote
This is why our country is so corrupt I’m going to vote for the Reform Uk
And get this country back to where it should be…