“My
life now is just about work, work, work ... and when I have time off, I am too
fatigued to do anything but sleep.”
Paul, a British citizen, married
his partner in May 2012, in the Philippines. She is Filipino and the
decision to marry was based on the assumption that having met the visa
requirements they would be able to make a life together in the UK.
Suddenly though the rules
changed, leaving Paul and his wife devastated.
The massive increase in the
amount Paul had to earn before he could sponsor his wife has made it impossible
for them to be together.
He works full time in retail and
doesn’t claim a single penny in benefits. Recently, he changed the branch of
the store he worked in to reduce travelling costs, and is taking on as much
overtime as possible, including working night shifts. Despite this, however, he
cannot meet the income criteria.
His life now is just about work,
work, work ... and when he has time off, he is too fatigued to do anything but
sleep and cope with the relapse of the depression he has suffered from, on and
off, for many years.
Paul is not asking for handouts,
he just wants to be able to live with his wife in the UK.
Paul’s wife is not entitled to
any benefits, so the message being put across in the media by Theresa May that
the presence of non-EU spouses would be a drain on the benefits system is
intended blatantly to mislead the British public, as their rights are chipped
away.
Paul does not have a fancy
accountant. He has paid his taxes diligently for years. It is Paul and others
like him who have contributed to the system, and yet he is being told
he cannot be with his wife as they are a threat
to the system.
MPs get a huge salary, they can
claim all manner of household expenses ranging from food and their TV licence,
to interest on their mortgage and rent payments (blatant abuse of expense
policies) and yet they have the nerve to put restrictions on the lives of ordinary
British citizens, and accuse us of being a threat to the British economy?
10 hours a day x 5 days a week at minimum wage gives you the money that is enough to satisfy minimum income requirements. How many hours does this guy work that his life is just about "work work work"?
ReplyDeleteWorking full-time in a min-wage job gives you £12-13k. And jobs aren't always available for the hours you can/want to work.
ReplyDelete