Swansea hopes to lead way to end poverty and debt
SWANSEA could one day lead the rest of Wales in helping people avoid becoming trapped in a cycle of debt and hardship.
This is the hope of a taskforce including Swansea Council, Swansea University, the local credit union and the campaign group Movement for Change which are drawing up plans to help residents facing financial problems which can lead to them borrowing money at extremely high rates.
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David Phillips
Swansea Council’s cabinet member for children and young people, Councillor Mitch Theaker, set up the taskforce.
He said: “For the first time Save the Children have launched a campaign to beat poverty in the UK.
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“Problems with the economy, sharp rises in fuel and food costs and changes to the benefit system are all set to have an increasing impact on families feeling the strain, and the temptation to access apparently ‘easy money’ can be strong.
Swansea Council’s cabinet members have all signed up to the local credit union as part an ethical financial alternative.
Swansea Council’s cabinet member for target areas, Ryland Doyle, said: “As an authority we are committed to increasing social inclusion and tackling inequality in our communities. The grip of debt only serves to increase inequality and can cause associated social problems and we are determined to raise awareness of safer options such as credit unions.”
Council leader David Phillips said he was making poverty eradication his number one priority.
Shortly after taking office this year, he said: “For too long Swansea has been a divided city — divided by wealth, divided by poverty, divided by access to opportunity or the lack of it, divided by health and life expectancy.
“We intend to begin to change that. Tackling poverty is at the top of our priorities.”
However, Mr Phillips said he realised the changes would not be possible overnight and would take time. Pledges to decrease poverty were welcomed by charities in Swansea.
Among them was the Cyrenians, which works to tackle poverty and homelessness, and has a base in Swansea’s High Street.
Cyrenians Chief executive Conrad Watkins previously said: “We welcome this announcement and we are very keen to work with the new administration in tackling poverty and deprivation.
“There are a lot of problems to tackle, including the rise in heroin use, particularly with young people. It’s estimated there are up to 6,000 users in Swansea, and yet there are just 650 treatment places.
“And the other issue is homelessness, because we have a toxic mix of welfare cuts and a rise in unemployment, and Swansea has been identified as one of the five most vulnerable cities to public sector cuts. Then you have elderly street drinkers who are ageing.
“Wales historically does not have the funding to tackle the issues, but we have our own ideas about how things can be developed, and are keen to talk to the administration.”
Comments
by Philosoraptor
Tuesday, October 16 2012, 2:48PM
“This is centred around high interest rates, but the solution is simple and requires direct action from the EU.
Essentially, a new law would have to be introduced stating that any lender operating in any form within the EU, either internally or externally, are outlawed from setting a lending rate above Euro inflation. Doomsayers claim that would bankrupt the EU because foreign lenders would not do business in the EU, they are wrong. The EU is by far the largest market on this planet, and they would conform to the law because those American lenders and those from other non-EU nations would go bust overnight if they didn't do business in the EU.
It is a such a shame that politicians have their own agenda which is opposite to the needs of the population. Considering how fragile the economies are, the rules and regulations should be amongst the strictest of any industry in human history. Instead it is one of the least regulated around, no wonder we are in the middle of a disaster.”
by Lezz_T
Tuesday, October 16 2012, 12:49PM
“The way out of "poverty and debt" is to encourage people not to borrow in the first place, once people get into the borrowing culture they never escape.”
by JerryLew
Tuesday, October 16 2012, 12:40PM
“Poverty & Debt - both good measures to try to tackle.
But why not also try to lead the way in investment and regeneration of Swansea.
SCFC are giving the City a fantastic image worldwide - lets push that as far a it can go.”
by weslangdon
Tuesday, October 16 2012, 11:01AM
“A useful way of making the cuts less harmful but it would have been better to halt them in their tracks...this ConDem Govt has no mandate for attacks on the poor.
This is a minority Govt and the Labour Administration in the WAG most certainly has no mandate to push Westminsters cuts onto the Welsh people. We need to ask our AMs why are they accepting these cuts, why are our local authorities shedding jobs, why are services being cut? Westminsters decision to pauperise Wales makes a mockery of devolution.”