It’s been a while since I had a political rant. But, there are very few things that get me on my soapbox quicker than incredibly privileged individuals claiming to know what it’s like to live at the other end of the social spectrum. So, for that, I guess poor Rishi should be congratulated. Because our Prime Minister, who went to a £40,000 per year school, claims to have gone without as a child. Because he didn’t have Sky TV!
Of all the privileged, pompous things he could have said to an electorate that has seen food bank usage soar and more and more children living in poverty! It shouldn’t need to be said, but Sky TV is a luxury. TV in general is a luxury for those who can’t afford it.
Not having an expensive subscription-only TV service is NOT “going without”.
To help poor Rishi come up with some better examples of how people are “going without” in his country, I’ve compiled a list of the things that I’ve personally gone without in the past so that I could keep a roof over my head and feed my children.
10 things I’ve gone without:
- Meals – when there’s very little food in the cupboard and no money to buy more, skipping meals is the logical answer. In the past, I have regularly fed the children and not had enough for myself. Sometimes, toast would be my only meal for a day.
- Hot showers – when the heating costs too much already, you think about how much extra it costs to heat water. I would prioritise making sure that the children had warm water for their baths and showers. This often meant leaving me with freezing cold water at the end.
- Clothes – It’s only relatively recently that I’ve started to revamp my wardrobe and stopped feeling quite so guilty about buying things for myself. For a very long time, my wardrobe consisted of old clothes I’d had for years and the occasional charity shop purchase. I still love charity shops, but now it’s a choice rather an a necessity.
- Shoes – I remember more than one occasion when I would realise that my trainers or shoes had holes in and I would carry on wearing them because there wasn’t enough money in the budget for new shoes. At times, I would only have one pair of shoes and I would wear them until they literally fell apart.
- Giving up space – in my old house, we were all very cramped. In the end, I gave up the master bedroom and moved into the tiny box room so that the children had a bit more space to play and sleep. They needed it more than I did. Before I was able to move, I was contemplating giving up the box room too, and moving on to a sofa bed in the lounge so that the children could have the extra bedroom.
- Dentists – Although I always made sure the children were seen regularly, I couldn’t afford to see the dentist for quite a long time because I couldn’t afford the cost of appointments. I earned too much for help with the costs, but not enough to make it affordable.
- Doctors appointments – I would also avoid having to see the doctor because the cost of a prescription would have been too much.
- Good sanitary products – when times are tough, you cut costs wherever you can. At times, this has also included buying the cheapest possible sanitary products rather than the ones I knew I needed.
- Sleep – it might sound silly, but sleep is a bit of a luxury for me. At times, I’ve worked every possible hour I can in order to make ends meet. This often meant surviving on only a few hours sleep each night.
- Time with friends – when the choice was to buy something one of the children needed or to have coffee with a friend, the children always came first. I know my friends would have probably understood, but pride meant I kept it to myself.
Why do I share this?
Now the purpose of this rant isn’t to make people feel sorry for me. Even with the things I have gone without, I know that others are struggling much more than I ever did. I am also incredibly fortunate to be in the situation I am now. It’s a luxury that I don’t have to worry quite so much.
The point is that our government – and our Prime Minister especially – is wholly and entirely out of touch with what it actually means to struggle as a parent or individual in this country.
The Trussel Trust gave out over 3.1 million emergency food parcels in 2023. This is more than double the figure from less than a decade earlier in 2017.
Action for Children estimates that 30% of UK children are living in poverty.
Shelter estimates that more than 300,000 people are currently homeless.
And in April 2024, the ONS released figures stating that approximately 1.5 million people are currently unemployed.
That, Mr. Sunak, is what it means to go without. Not missing out on watching MTV or Nickelodeon.