Student style loans

[Annie.]

Good or bad idea?


http://m.guardian.co.uk/society/2013/ap ... unemployed

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[Tim Lund]

Difficult question, Annie. My inclination is that it's a complex gimmick, but it deserves thinking about. But is this really for the polite world of the Café? Feels more like a Pub thread to me.

[Eagle]

I did hear someone speaking for Labour say that they will only pay benefit for two years then nothing.

Like to think they mean it.

I believe this is policy in many EU countries such as Spain.

[Tim Lund]

In principle, this is a good policy, restoring the contributory principle, so giving people an incentive to work. It comes from the party's policy review, and has been developed by the thinktank IPPR. These people are not stupid, and in coming up with this sort of proposal, they will have been listening to what ordinary people want. It's the same sort of responsible approach which meant, towards the end of Gordon Brown's government, some kind of consensus was emerging between all three parties about how to reform welfare. However, the dynamics of our political system mean that any consensus there might be on this will unravel, because as soon as you get actual cases of people coming up to 6 months unemployed, and still no work in prospect, Labour will find it hard to be tough, while the Conservatives will find it hard not to start talking about workers, not shirkers, and everyone will be happily back in their tribal political bunkers.