A daily summary of social care stories from the main newspapers

By David Callaghan and Reg McKay.

Poor give more generously than the rich

A new survey reveals that poor people give a higher proportion
of their income to charity than the better off. The study by the
independent thinktank the Social Market Foundation shows that
poorer people put more cash in collection boxes than their more
wealthy peers.

The report entitled ‘The Widows Might: how charities depend on
the poor’, also shows that charities do not redistribute income to
lower income people as much as was previously believed.

More than a thousand people who donate to charity were quizzed,
and their answers revealed that people with an annual income below
£5,000 give an average of 4.5 per cent to charity, whereas
people earning £40,000 only give 2 per cent.

Some people on very high incomes give large amounts, but they
are in a minority.

Source:- The Guardian Friday 21 December page 8

Tories to soften tone on asylum

Shadow home secretary Oliver Letwin has changed the
Conservatives’ approach to asylum seekers saying that they need to
be treated with more compassion.

The move represents a significant departure from the previous
policies of the Tories, who advocated secure centres for all asylum
seekers and fast track removal of bogus asylum seekers.

Letwin said: “The tales that some of these people have to tell
about how they arrived here are pretty frightful.

“It is quite clear that the bureaucratic nightmare has put
terrible pressure on the people on the receiving end, the asylum
seekers themselves,” he said.

Source:- The Times Friday 21 December page 10 

Scottish newspapers

Asylum seeker wins fight against living in
Sighthill

Mustafa Thiab, a Palestinian asylum seeker, has won the legal
right to challenge the home office’s refusal to allow him to
move from Sighthill in Glasgow because of his fears for his
family’s safety.

The home office had rejected Thiab’s application saying
that racial tension in the area had died down. The high court in
London ruled yesterday that there was a reasonable argument that
the decision by the National Asylum Support Service was
unreasonable and unlawful.

Source:- The Herald Friday 21 December page 1

Legislative blunder stops thousands of
evictions

New legislation introduced on 3 December has inadvertently saved
thousands of Scots from eviction. The legislation does not allow
for sheriff officers to repossess properties, and only permits the
serving of eviction orders by recorded delivery.

Welfare rights groups are advising those in trouble with arrears
not to answer their doors and thereby avoid eviction. The new
legislation is being described as “a dog’s breakfast” by
lawyers and housing campaigners. There is an average of 6,000
repossessions in Scotland every year. The Scottish executive is
taking urgent action to remedy the flaw.

Source:- The Herald Friday 21 December page 1