𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

If there’s one thing that annoys me more than anything, it’s waste. Not the odd misplaced tenner, but the kind that is so outrageous it really makes you wonder if anyone in charge actually cares. I don’t think I could safely call myself a Tory councillor if Margaret Thatcher wasn’t one of my heroes. She famously compared managing the nation’s finances to running a household budget. Even her fiercest critics would struggle to argue with that kind of common-sense approach.

That’s because for most of us, money isn’t an abstract concept. It’s hard-earned, and therefore we think carefully about how it’s spent. And this is why she’d be turning in her grave at the latest bombshell figure to emerge from the Department for Work and Pensions.

It was recently revealed that dead people were handed £850million DWP benefits, with less than half the cash clawed back. That’s right: dead people.

The explanation given is that a notification of death was received too late to stop benefits from being paid. It was also reported that there were overpayments to people who’d been moved into state-funded care.

Not wanting to state the bleeding obvious, but that is almost a billion quid that could be used on things that actually matter to people: education, health, roads. Hell, I would rather it be spent on a McDonald’s meal for every man, woman and child in the country than handed out to people in the ground.

Robert Jenrick, Reform UK’s self-styled ‘Shadow Chancellor’, has ripped into the Government for the mortifying gaffe, saying “we’re going to treat your money like we would our own”.

It’s not rocket science. And it’s a great philosophy. But I really do think that, as well as this, there needs to be real consequences in the public sector for such mind-blowing gaffes. As it stands, no one has taken accountability. There is a short-lived outrage, but everyone quickly moves on.

When I approached the DWP, I asked if any staff had been given the boot, sanctioned, or systems changed as a result of the gargantuan error. Nope.

They said it is “DWP policy to recover all debt where it is reasonable and cost effective to do so” and that once notified of a death, they “act quickly”. Not quickly enough, it seems.

If it had happened in the private sector, heads would roll, bosses would be fired, and systems would be changed. But when it’s taxpayer cash – our money – no one seems to care. More than a billion quid, just gone.

We urgently need to return to Maggie’s approach to running the country’s finances like a household budget. Because right now, it’s painfully clear no one is holding the purse strings.

Finally, a victim for basic comment sense

Hurrah! Common sense has prevailed as benefit bludgers can no longer drive around in Beemers on the taxpayers’ buck.

The Motability scheme has long been a source of my ire because it is being abused. It was originally – and understandably – designed to help those with a serious disability get about. But has since changed beyond all recognition, with reports of those with ADHD and anxiety using the scheme to secure a luxury motor. A jaw-dropping one in five new cars on our roads are Motability cars.

Now, after public outcry, the government has finally agreed to crack down on the car models beneficiaries of the scheme can choose from, and the list of options no longer features luxury brands such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi.

At least it’s a start. Next? Tackling the ballooning benefits bill. I won’t hold my breath…

Hubby digs himself into a hole

My husband is, by nature, cautious about who knows his business. Before you ask, no, he’s not a Russian spy. But he’s never been on social media and really despairs of my selfie posting.

However, he came home the other day and confessed something that upped the ante to a strange but hilarious new level. In an effort to avoid awkward questions at the barbershop about what he does for a living, he’s created a whole new identity for himself.

Rather than the usual small talk about holidays, he’s now simply someone who “works with taxes”.

The poor barber has started to ask his advice, which is threatening to unveil his alias – unless, of course, I’ve already blown his cover!