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
