- EXCLUSIVE: Unemployed people in Jaywick, Essex said they didn’t want a job
- The Essex town was ranked the most deprived in England in a recent survey
- Locals say there is work people just don’t want to take it and live on benefits
Benefits scroungers in a seaside town described as one of the ‘most-deprived’ in Britain have boasted how they don’t want a job because they can ‘chill out’ and ‘enjoy life’ while not having to work.
The unemployed in Jaywick, Essex are claiming ‘thousands of pounds’ a month of taxpayer’s cash – while locals complain there are jobs, people just don’t want them.
It comes as the number of people of working age in Britain that are economically inactive hit 9.4million, meaning they are neither employed nor looking for work.
Meanwhile, at the end of last year, 4,000 applications for sickness benefits were being made every single day.
Chris Patient, 36, told MailOnline he had no desire to work and was happy on his benefit payments, which includes £393 a month of Universal Credit.
He said: ‘It is plenty to live on for me. I enjoy my life.
‘A job might be nice but not at the moment. Maybe if a supermarket was open I could get something.
‘There are no jobs around here but I do not want one anyway.
‘There’s a lot of unemployed people here and a lot of jobs in the wider area go to European workers.’
Martin Thomas, 44, has been unemployed for four years and has lived in the Jaywick area all his life.
He said: ‘I get a few thousand a month on the benefits I am on. It’s very good.
‘I don’t feel I can work at the moment. I enjoy my life here. I chill out and look at the sea a lot and do my shopping.
‘There’s no jobs around here which pay as well as the benefits I am on do. So why would I want one?’
Ryan Parkinson, 44, has been unemployed and on benefits for three years.
He said: ‘There are no jobs here. Nobody is taking people on. I earn more on benefits than any job I might get anyway.
‘Jaywick itself is in a bad state. The roads are full of potholes and it’s very depressing. More money needs to be spent on it.’
Jaywick was recently ranked the most deprived town in England by the Office for National Statistics who uses ‘indices of multiple deprivation’ (IMD) to determine their scores.
The Essex seaside town recieved an IMD score of 92.7 out of 100, the worst in the country.
But retired locals have blasted the ‘work shy attitude’ of the unemployed in Jaywick, claiming even though the seaside town is in a deprived area, there are opportunities to work.
Ken Tubby, 62, from Jaywick told MailOnline: ‘If you want to get a job here, they are available.
‘If you want one, you’ll get it. The area is full of drug users. It’s very depressing seeing it. It’s the harsh reality of life.’
Retired tour manager Joyce Howe, 72, added: ‘It’s shocking. It is very depressing. I’ve always worked but people here don’t seem to.
‘I have lived here for ten years and it’s a widespread problem.
‘There’s more European workers. They keep the local and British economy going.’
The overall welfare bill for the British taxpayer currently stands at £297 billion and it is projected to climb to £360 billion over the next five years — the equivalent of 11 per cent of Britain’s entire economic output.
Over the same period, spending on sickness benefits is expected to rise from £66billion to more than £90billion.
Nearly 3million people of working age are currently on long-term sick leave – the highest figure ever, it was revealed on April 17.
MailOnline also spoke to locals living in two other towns that were ranked among the worst ten deprived areas in the UK by ONS – where people say the ‘unemployed need to get back to work’ and ‘improve the situation for those already living there’.
For the few tourists passing through Gainsborough in Lincolnshire, the market town might seem like the perfect place to stop for a coffee.
But the boarded-up shops in between the bistros and cafes tell the story of a sad decline.
Many residents say the town centre exists only to serve what little remains of the tourist trade, while locals feel like ‘prisoners’ in aging terraced houses without facilities.
Stephen Killick, 71, said: ‘I have lived in Gainsborough all my life. It is an absolute s*******.
‘There is nothing to do and the shops are all shutting. Meanwhile, they are spending millions on a new cinema when no one went to the one which is already closed anyway.
‘They might be dreaming of a new shopping centre but the place is dead. People just don’t want to work.’
Rubbing his hands together, he added: ‘Why should they? When they are getting free money?’
Kebab shop worker Alfie Martin, 19, said: ‘I have not got the best job in the world but it pays and I think more people could work around here.
‘There are some amazing jobs being advertised online but people can be very lazy about searching for them when they are on the dole because they know they can get by on benefits.’
Dental nurse Sue Smith, 27, added: ‘I have lived here for five years and there is not a lot to do.
‘You have to go to Doncaster to find any decent shops because most of them are closed in the town centre.
‘I wanted to take my daughter swimming at the local leisure centre but it is very run down.
‘The inside is gross with mould and leaking ceilings and the changing rooms are disgusting.
‘So I would not let my daughter swim there. But there are virtually no other facilities for local children. There very few parks.
‘The houses are old and many of them have issues with mould and damp. I only moved here to be closer to my parents who help me with my two and four year old.’
Grangetown, just south of Middlesborough, in Teesside has a population of just over 6,000 and has been ranked the seventh most deprived area in the UK by ONS.
Many people in the area are known to be claiming the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) which allows them extra benefits if they have additional care or mobility needs.
However, some residents believe the system is being abused.
David Watson is on benefits and while the 42-year-old is about to start a new job, he says many more in his position have no motivation to work.
He said: ‘The situation is a joke.
‘We need to get more people off sick leave but I think some are happy with the benefits they’re on and choose not to work.
‘Drugs is a big problem in the area and so many people are off sick.
‘Everyone around here seems to be on the PIP list but they don’t want to work.
‘People have the attitude that they will have more money in their pocket if they do claim.
‘People are on up to £700 a month on benefits and they seem to be happy with that.
‘They need a nudge to get back in the workplace but it doesn’t happen and they’re happy to take the benefits.’
A large number of residents were once employed by Southbank Steelmaking Plant before it was closed in 2015 and demolished in 2022, which in turn triggered a steep decline in employment.
Eric Fletcher, 71, recently retired after a long career which saw him do multiple jobs including work in the steel industry.
He said: ‘I worked all my life until I was 70 and I don’t believe these people should be getting as many benefits as they are getting.
‘This PIP thing is a disgrace. If they have problems they can claim it but it seems like anything counts towards it.
‘I know people who claim it but they are on drugs.
‘But then again why should these people find work if they are on good benefits, it’s all wrong.
‘I’m comfortable because I worked all my life but there’s lots who don’t work.
‘This area in general is getting worse. It’s bad for people on motorbikes and drugs.
‘The Government are making it easier for people not to go to work and some people are just lazy.’
One woman, who remained anonymous, added: ‘This place speaks for itself, when you look at it.
‘I’m not on PIP. Some genuinely need it, others don’t but claim anyway.
‘And there are people who are unable to work. However, there are also many who are capable, but refuse to get a job. It’s a problem.’
Particularly striking is the pattern of worklessness among young people.
One recent survey by this paper showed that in the 16 to 24 age group, 280,000 people are in receipt of unemployment benefits — twice as many as a decade ago, and 50,000 more than before Covid struck.
And it appears that the younger generation are more likely to be afflicted by negativity about their mental health.
Research by the Resolution Foundation revealed that the number of 18 to 24-year-olds who are economically inactive due to mental health has more than doubled in the past decade from 93,000 to 190,000.
It comes as Rishi Sunak announced on Friday that GPs would be stripped on their power to sign people off work, under plans for a crackdown on Britain’s ‘sick note culture’.
The PM used the speech to lay out plans for specialist teams to assess what work people can do, rather than GPs signing them off.
Mr Sunak stressed he did not want to make the system less generous for those who genuinely needed support, but would not ‘let down’ Brits by refusing to tackle the issue for fear of ‘causing offence’.
He said it was his ‘moral mission’ to get people in work, as it was the way to improve living standards.
William Turner is a seasoned U.K. correspondent with a deep understanding of domestic affairs. With a passion for British politics and culture, he provides insightful analysis and comprehensive coverage of events within the United Kingdom.
