Post by nickd on Dec 29, 2011 12:11:43 GMT 1
The BBC gave a fair amount of coverage this morning to a rising concern which young people face as more and more of them file for 'Debt Relief Orders' - a form of 'mini-bankruptcy' for people who have no assets, limited income and debts of no more than £15,000
What's extraordinary is how Government pledges to impose all of the current austerity measures to protect our 'future generations' and yet they face the toughest time of all with a bleak future, escalating education costs, the highest youth unemployment figures for many years; - providing our future generation with little hope or aspiration for the years ahead.
What makes it all the more extraordinary is how Government is increasingly pulling the plug on the advice services which help those in debt; - where's the logic in withdrawing such vital services with news like this becoming more and more topical?
Recent and related stories
29 December 2011
"Debt experts are warning people not to delay seeking help if Christmas has tipped them into uncontrollable debt."
The Insolvency Service has reported that increasing numbers of young people are using a new form of bankruptcy called a Debt Relief Order to protect themselves against their creditors.
Click on link to watch video coverage..
www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16351283
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More on how the young are facing debt worries, as reported by Yahoo...
The "bleak" financial situation faced by the younger generation has been laid bare, as official figures showed that more people aged between 25 and 34 are turning to a type of insolvency known as a debt relief order (DRO) than any other age group.
One in four people who have taken out DROs in England and Wales since they were introduced fall into this age category according to the Insolvency Service, which has launched a Dealing With Your Debt campaign encouraging people to seek help early.
The campaign is supported by debt advice charities including the Citizens Advice Bureau, the Money Advice Trust (MAT) and the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS).
They are encouraging people not to put off seeking advice and helping them avoid the potential pitfalls of high-interest personal loans such as "payday" loans, which could include finding other forms of credit if necessary.
Joanna Elson, chief executive of the MAT, said: "Many struggling 25 to 34-year-olds might have expected to be further up the financial ladder by now. At the same age their parents would most likely have bought their first home, have a comfortable pension lined up, and be saving for the future. For today's 25 to 34-year-olds the picture is much bleaker. The good news is that help is available and free advice services can make a big difference."
uk.news.yahoo.com/more-young-people-taking-dros-025937328.html
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And more about how Citizens Advice are trying to help out, this shows how the problem has been building since November last year...
The number of young people seeking help from Citizens Advice increased by more than 20% over the last 12 months.
Problems for which the under-25s sought help leapt to 729,825 with 80% of them relating to unemployment, debt and housing issues as the recession continued to take its toll on the young.
Requests for help and advice about jobseekers allowance were up 40% on Citizens advice figures for 2008-09 and problems with housing benefit and privately rented property also rose sharply. The rise in the number of young people not in employment, education or training has increased dramatically since the start of the banking crisis and subsequent downturn.
Problems with debt made up a third of all enquiries, benefit issues accounted for a quarter, employment issues 12% and housing a further 10%.
The charity highlighted the case of a young Stockton resident called Stacey who approached them with an employment issue: “I took on a short two-week job to get some cash,” she explained. “A month after I had finished the job I had still not been paid. Citizens Advice helped me write a letter to the employer, but three months later I’d still not had a reply. In the end I made a claim to take it to an employment tribunal – only then did I finally hear from the employer and get my money.”
Citizens Advice are launching a new website to cater for the rise in the number of under-25s seeking help, advice4me.org.uk, that will focus specifically on the debt, benefit and employment problems that young people are facing today.
www.totallymoney.com/news/index.php/2010/11/more-young-people-seeking-help-from-citizens-advice/