Expenses fiddlers who were let off to fine benefit fiddlers

Benefits are there to help people in need. They are vital to a lot of people. There is no shame in getting help if you need it. However those who fiddle their benefit claims, in some cases stealing thousands from us, deserve to be prosecuted.

However........

There is something a little off by the latest wheeze our populist MP's and battered government. They have decided that those caught fiddling their expenses are to face on the spot fines of up to £2,000.

I have nothing against benefit cheats being fined, or even imprisoned, but not like this. This is fines without facing any court. That cannot be right. It's wrong that the accused aren't defended and proper justice is done rather than resting on a whim of an official.

More than that there is something sick about our MPs. the majority of whom fiddled their expenses and were let off their umpteen millions of stolen loot, deciding that the poorest and most vulnerable should be hammered without mercy for anything the claims officer decides is wrong. The point is that even if the claimant wrongly claims £1 they will receive a fine of at least £350.

So one set of fiddlers are hammered and those who decide on the hammering escape with their stolen loot.

It stinks.