Benefit Mum of Eight Defends Planning Holiday to Spain

Benefit Mum of Eight Defends Planning Holiday to Spain.

A mother of eight from Birmingham, who survives solely on benefits, has defended her decision to book a holiday in Spain for herself and the whole family. Marie Buchan has vigorously defended the trip on the grounds she needs a break after the pressure of looking after her eight children at home during the coronavirus pandemic. The 39-year-old Brummy plans to give her family ‘the best Christmas that I can’ before jetting off to Alicante in Spain.

‘People are losing their jobs but where they’ve been put on furlough the Government is paying 80% of their wages. ‘Government claimants like myself, a mum of eight, are forgotten. ‘The kids have been at home for most of the year because the schools and colleges have had coronavirus outbreaks or been closed. ‘We haven’t got a laptop at home to access classes online, we can’t afford one without getting in debt, the help is not there.

The ‘Octo-Mum’said: ‘You have to provide for your children but we’ve had no increase whatsoever to help us with food, travel and heating, we’ve had nothing at all. ‘People might say I’m a Government claimant sponging off the state but I wonder how much help those people have had? ‘Did they take the 80% through the furlough, or did they say no? ‘It’s been a massive struggle. Shops that have shut down have had help, we’ve had no help at all.’

It is understood that Marie claims benefits totalling around £500 each week, helping her run a household for her children aged between six and 16. It is not the first time she has been in the news, back in January 2015 she appeared in national newspapers complaining about a benefits cap. the story read:

‘A single mother of eight who receives benefits of £2,000 a month claims she is being forced to find her first job because of the new cap on welfare handouts. Marie Buchan, of Selly Oak in Birmingham, receives benefits of £26,000 a year but claims the decision to cap handouts at £23,000 will leave her and her young family struggling to survive. The 33-year-old fears the cap will leave many families in financial difficulty and could cause similar problems to the bedroom tax.’

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