Iain Duncan Smith, the outspoken and widely criticised Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, has today outlined new plans to save the welfare state money and reduce the burden on government spending made up by welfare, benefit claimants and ‘the work shy’.
Amongst a series of measures outlined in a new report drafted by IDS are a number of cost saving ideas one of which looks highly likely to make it into law should the Tories be elected for a second term.
In order to save the NHS money, the report suggests that the cost of prescriptions for spectacles should be increased in England. In Wales however, where prescription charges are free a more drastic measure is earmarked to be introduced. Namely if a benefit claimant has a thirty two inch Tv or bigger then he or she will no longer qualify for free glasses on the NHS.
When asked to comment on the proposed measure Mr Duncan Smith or IDS for short said ‘I don’t see what the fuss is about. If you’ve got bad eyes and have a got big TV, you get the same benefit of having glasses anyway. This is a sensible measure which should save the country literally hundreds of pounds. ‘
Work-shy
Mr Duncan Smith then said that ‘we all know that the workshy, lazy benefit scroungers out there all plead poverty yet somehow or other they’ve all got big, flatscreen Tv’s that make the main viewer on the Starship Enterprise look small…’
He then went to say ‘Just how big does Jeremy Kyle, need to be.’
When pressed further Mr Duncan Smith then volunteered that he wished that ‘he had a big Tv.’
Opposition Members of Parliament have started calling this proposed measure the ‘Tv Tax’, pointing out that some people actually use their spectacles to read.
Mr Duncan Smith then retorted that reading was in decline amongst the ‘lower classes’ and that using spectacles to read was a ‘minority interest’ that could easily be alleviated by passing a simple law to force all publications to be in ‘big print’. This last measure could save the country ‘literally millions,’ he exclaimed. In fact it is so good idea that it’s going in the report alongside the glasses thing…
Help keep news FREE for our readers
Supporting your local community newspaper/online news outlet is crucial now more than ever. If you believe in independent journalism, then consider making a valuable contribution by making a one-time or monthly donation. We operate in rural areas where providing unbiased news can be challenging. Read More About Supporting The West Wales Chronicle
