Too poor to ride a bus... the grim reality of life in a UK town with no pubs or public toilets

WITH a council £1.3 billion in debt and services cut to the bone, most people in hard-up Tilbury have given up on voting.
The port town in Essex, which has no pub or public toilets but plenty of boarded-up shops, has one of the lowest turnouts for elections in the country.
Even though it is home to London’s biggest dock, a terminal for cruise liners and a huge Amazon distribution centre, the town’s unemployment rate is close to twice the national average.
New research has revealed that the most deprived areas are less likely to put a cross on a ballot paper than those in the richest ones.
That has long been the case in Tilbury.
In the Riverside ward, which is where the Empire Windrush boat arrived with immigrants from the Caribbean in 1948, only 20 per cent of people voted in the previous local elections.
Last week, Tilbury St Chads in the centre, which is one of the poorest areas in the country, went to the polls, but the most impoverished locals felt abandoned by politicians.
The turnout was just 18.7 per cent, by far the lowest in Thurrock council's poll this month.
With hope in short supply, unemployed local Martin Howlett, 57, carrying a copy of The Sun, told how he’d sold his car, motorbike and caravan because he’d not received any universal credit payments since December.
Martin, who most recently worked as a technician for the London Ambulance service, said: “I didn’t vote. It doesn’t change anything. I have worked all my life and paid in, but now I am struggling to pay my mortgage.
“I’ve not had a universal credit payment since December, I’ve sold my car, caravan and motorbike.
“My dad is dying of cancer, but I have to walk to the hospital because I can’t afford the bus fare.”
We met Martin as he came out of the volunteer-run One Community Centre in Tilbury, which aims to help people find work and to deal with problems such as debt.
They used to have a much larger office, but it was torn down three years ago to build an up-to-date health care facility.
But now that site is a load of rubble in the centre of town and the funding has dried up.
Maria Cabral, 45, who volunteers in the community centre, also didn’t vote.
She says: “We are among the poorest areas, it is very sad to see. Even though we have the port and Amazon there is a lot of unemployment.
“People come in here to collect food stamps, to learn about training opportunities, apprenticeships, possible jobs, because there is no job centre here.”
One local who was born in Tilbury has given up hope.
Sally, 44, who did not wish to give her surname, says: “Tilbury is finished. I wouldn’t walk down the street at night.
“I won’t let my five-year-old son go out on his own here when he gets older.
“They’ve closed down the youth clubs and the only pub is in West Tilbury. There was too much trouble in the pubs in the centre.”
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[@muckraker7942]

Council is £1.3 Billion in debt? And the place looks like that? Someone should be in jail.

[@carolarmer1204]

Is it a labour council ?

[@SOULKEEPAH]

​@@carolarmer1204it was conservative they lost 10 seats, now it's under labour

[@carolarmer1204]

@@SOULKEEPAH thanks , I was just wondering because it tends to be labour that sink their councils with debt .

[@danwelsh4977]

They used all our council tax money to give themselves a huge pay rise above inflation a few years back. Most staff have new high end cars. The council skint themselves by lining their pockets with the council tax payments of the people of the borough. Wasted money on ridiculous stuff. They decorated a new meeting office & it didn't have enough seats. This is all truth, I've friends who work within the offices in Grays, Essex. It's as corrupt as our government in there.

[@user-ie4tt1xp7j]

@@carolarmer1204 if it's labour - it's a labour fault if it's conservatives - it's still a labour fault, innit?

[@thebaron9059]

Not surprised to see an Amazon warehouse there, their greed preys on places like this, sucking any remaining life and humanity out of it, purely in the name of greed.

[@Harmonikaklange]

Sure, the instant Amazon disappears all the problems will be resolved and all will be better…..

[@shauncameron8390]

Amazon's so-called greed is the reason why anyone even has a job there.

[@JD-vj4go]

​@@Harmonikaklange You should reread the comment you replied to slowly. Maybe a few times.

[@lawrencevincent1]

The Tories have done this. Ask yourself the question. Who has been in power for the last 14 years.

[@Redsleather]

This is Essex, perhaps the most loyal, devout far right wing, Conservative supporting county in England. God knows why. It’s grim, it’s rough, it’s depressed, it’s without hope. Yet they’ll still be out voting Tory at the next election. Kent is just as grim

[@Mickenos85]

In Tilbury ? Whos your local mp ? Sort him out.

[@maylok3508]

@@Redsleather : Really ? This is so shocking.. I didn't know Essex is like this, at all... and what is wrong with such a small community, to do small pub poetry nights or things like that ?.... Or to broadcast films... or movies... or sports channel or matches etc.

[@Arltratlo]

Labour!

[@CupOfSweetTea]

Here's another way to look at it: Tory in power doing whatever they want because there has been no effective opposition to stop them

[@Mike-ww9ei]

Can’t blame the EU anymore

[@jimmycburfield5997]

Yes Tilbury, a trading port should be booming with all the wonderful opportunities Brexit Brought us! Not far away Comrade Mogg and comrade Farage’s friends in the city of London have used Brexit to deregulate financial services and make plenty of extra money! It must be an attitude thing!

[@geertstroy]

yes in the sense the contrast is all too painful ....

[@haruhisuzumiya6650]

​@@jimmycburfield5997at least when the UK riots you can try to find farrage if he hasn't already left the UK

[@jimmycburfield5997]

@@haruhisuzumiya6650 well Farage is able to keep his options open.

[@leej-wp9ft]

So the very simple questions is - when will the council be releasing a report showing how every penny of how the 1.3 billion was spent.

[@NotALot-xm6gz]

32nd February 2025?

[@jamesbarbour8400]

Indeed - all Councils should be audited and frequently so - it is taxpayers money after all and we therefore have a right to know where it's being spent. Would be even better if we had a say on how it's spent, both at local (Council) level, but also National (Government) level. Sick of being left living paycheck to paycheck every month, whilst Government Ministers are continually able to live high on the hog - just wrong !

[@chrysalis4126]

Up until recently it was a tory council so don't hold your breath.

[@MeiinUK]

@@jamesbarbour8400 : They are audited.... yes, it is.... but sometimes, it is the actual "short term" decisions which makes a situation extremely bad !!!....

[@JohnDuffy-bq8wg]

A lot of the pubs closed down due to violence, why would anyone pay to do up and run a pub just to get it wrecked, same in grimsby and jaywich, it undoubtedly run down but the people have not really helped when nobody will invest in a town center that's just full of crime, I live in Northampton, 2 estate's a mile from each other exactly the same flat same council, one has kept it tidy litter picking and keeping on top of crime, the other has a burnt out car broken windows old cans and beer bottles graffiti everywhere and just looks like a totally slum, the only people who stay are people who can't get out and so it goes on till it becomes a craphole, my area is clean tidy no problems no grafitti or crime, both the same council, people have to make an effort to improve their life and their community, I'm skint but I do litter pick and treat my area and neighbours with respect, it really has to start with a community helping itself, really can't blame it all on politicians, the pubs closed because of violence the shops left because of shoplifting and harrasment, not an easy fix but it can be done

[@1gerard47]

Need more people like you.

[@Arltratlo]

Tories dont need to help, you need to pay them first!

[@drd6416]

We need more people taking account for their actions, not wiping their hands of it

[@raymondmaher1388]

The North has been treated like this for many years, now it affects the South it is supposed to be a crime by the Tories,

[@RendererEP]

Honestly, the Thames Estaury and Medway towns have always been like this

[@hey12542]

I'm from the South and I moved north and I agree. It's like being in two different countries tbh. I still prefer the North to be fair but it definitely doesn't get what the south gets and it's unfair.

[@outlawJosieFox]

Well it was a crime by Tories then and is now. 😊

[@SVEVelsen]

@@outlawJosieFox The UK economy was killed by refusing to let the mines and other old dead industries die. Throughout the 1970's and into the 80's until Thatcher the UK put itself behind the rest of Europe and wasted billions in subsidies to skyrocket the national debt. The Dutch closed the coalmines in the early 1970's, that region was normalising by the end of the 2010's. Thanks to Labour, the UK did so only in the mid '80s. Guess what? Same recovery period applies there. Who championed that economic suicide? Labour did. Even dropped steel beams on people to murder them if they disagreed with Labour.

[@wanderingwilliam5031]

Jaywick, Clacton, Tilbury, Grays are a few of the areas that have been neglected. Northerners often like to think they are hard done by but the south doesn't fare much different.

[@captainplatinum]

Investigate the council officials bank accounts . If it’s being used to monitor benefit claimants it should be used to root out corruption

[@boota1979]

@captainplatinum Monitoring the publics bank accounts is nothing short of criminal!

[@Battismore-Blue]

Makes Rwanda look like paradise

[@lorenzomagazzeni5425]

Probably the weather there is not as grim.

[@SinaAla]

Rwanda is currently doing great; definitely cleaner than where I live (Los Angeles)

[@unusedsub3003]

The UK is just so awful 😖

[@corneliuscornia3189]

😊😊

[@sashaboo72]

Some parts are lovely, just not this part!

[@Arltratlo]

yip, and they voted for it!

[@Mr.Patrick_Hung]

I am glad that I live in China.

[@corneliuscornia3189]

@@Mr.Patrick_Hung 😍😍

[@NotALot-xm6gz]

How does a council get £1.3 billion into debt? Why is no-one in prison?

[@Gazr965]

Benefits fiddlers, adult care services is 2 of em !

[@Hubbellification]

The irony is they have a massive Amazon warehouse and I bet the people who live there buy most of their purchases online yet the high street is dead and partly as a result of that the area is on its knees. This is happening all over the country and society is suffering as a result.

[@rjjcms1]

Wealth extracting business models in action.

[@muckle8]

Amazon are the anti christ

[@rajeshbista2690]

Irony here is that you don't see anything wrong with Tory policies.

[@maylok3508]

It's weird isn't it ? lol... You would think that they would try to run an actual store.. and then get those goods at an ultra cheap price point. Or to open an office cross the border and to make use of the cheaper import/export price point.. lol.. But instead, they do things this way ? I don't get it.... lol... Even though I can get from Amazon, I still visit my local Tesco.. and my local wet market as well.. and the local butchers.. etc etc.. And I also buy from different places as well... so everybody gets my money. The locals here are very good people... They are. And once you paid off your business, and the overheads, you still keep steady the prices, so that you are basically creating a wage economy. And if you do have extra or excess.. and it goes through another business cycle. Then bank that money. It just goes into a building society, or a cooperative. How else, can you function without an actual economy to function with ???... Create a local cooperative bank !...

[@muckle8]

Amazon are being supported worldwide and they are the anti christ . The high street is being engineered into history on purpose .

[@5578pedro]

What a disgrace that place is. Whoever runs it they should be ashamed.

[@rjjcms1]

Residents taking action to help one another the solution to regenerate the fabric of that community? Even if little actions individually,from small acorns? Shunning the exploiters and politicians that have done them down.

[@Paws4Thought669]

I bet there are plenty of Turkish barbers shops though

[@danwelsh4977]

At least 4 in my home town they only take cash

[@Paws4Thought669]

@@danwelsh4977 ha , it's clearly a laundering move XD

[@danwelsh4977]

@@Paws4Thought669 funny you should say that because that is exactly the thought on a lot of the Essex peoples mind.

[@tonyrobinson362]

Don't forget the nailbars always doing well?

[@RoyPeters1]

​@@Paws4Thought669 Lol Turkish mafia 😂

[@CaptainSwing-wr8ob]

They need jobs for local people.That is local people from Africa, Turkey,Bangladesh, India and so on and on and on and on.

[@geertstroy]

Izz ze new local fyi. Supposed to spark sparky new in-sights.

[@rogerjoesbury9410]

​@@geertstroy❓❓🤔

[@eriktopolsky8531]

British DECLINE is gradual, but constant and consisten, by the time your kids have grown up it is completelly different country in negative sence, there is no stopping of this decline in sight. UK became LAUGHING STOCK in 20 years time. Unbelievable

[@valuetraveler2026]

well what else normally happens to empires?

[@user-tu4qg1hq1i]

Britain sacrificed themselves to save the world from Hitler. That is why you Brits will always be respected.

[@campervan-john]

Why does he not live full-time in the camper and move away from the dump

[@SVEVelsen]

The small detail of that being illegal. We don't want car-based slums everywhere.

[@PGHEngineer]

It's always the case with these people that what they say never adds up. The journo asking the questions is not interested in finding out the real truth, just promoting the narrative he decided on long before he spoke to anybody. Finding out the real truth would take too much time and effort.

[@techscrew2]

My thoughts exactly, keep the camper, sell the Range Rover and the house, early retirement! He won’t look back. Bricks and mortar are over rated!

[@johnniethepom7545]

​@@techscrew2 A house can be a millstone around one's neck .

[@marekohampton8477]

@@techscrew2 He could sell up and retire abroad to somewhere with a third of the cost of living

[@Dean-po6ns]

14 long miserable years of corrupt tory rule has lead to many towns like this falling apart up and down the uk.

[@adamsimmons631]

Thank goodness we have a general election in July. The only decent thing the government has done in 14 years. The fact that all the supposed "big hitters" in the government are now scrambling to leave before the election speaks volumes. Good riddance to bad rubbish

[@mabbrey]

could be any where in uk ,its one big dump now

[@nbandpinportugal]

No it isn't. If only we could all live in the Cotswolds eh ?

[@muckle8]

90% of it is .

[@user-fg5fh9ps5u]

The UK is not a dump

[@GeeCeeWU]

@@muckle8 90% of it isn't as far as I'm concerned.

[@muckle8]

@GeeceeWU should of gone to specsavers! 😎

[@michaelobrien9825]

I PITY THE POOR PEOPLE THAT HAVE TO RESIDE THERE, WHAT CHANCE HAVE THEY ?.

[@geertstroy]

The unlikely chance to chance it up...read oop , and levellit oop to worldbeatin' heighhhts .

[@julianaylor4351]

Welcome to Britain broken by the Tories, so they could make their mates and themselves rich.

[@Arltratlo]

thank god, their voters are not more EU citizens... we have EU elections soon, just imagine how many idiots are banned from voting now.... we here are so lucky, the Tories are all your problem now, enjoy it!

[@lothean2099]

What ate Tories? I'm curious. I really dont know.

[@valuetraveler2026]

so tories run all the councils?

[@julianaylor4351]

@@valuetraveler2026 No they deliberately deprive non Tory councils of funds, causing deprivation. They call it austerity, but what they are really doing is spending the money on themselves and their friends.

[@Egorrotneck]

They are responsible for funding the councils and they have been reducing the councils budgets every year so yes the Tories are responsible

[@abeonthehill166]

I am a truck driver and see social breakdown all over the Cities i visit. Last week i saw a woman crapping on the pavement, three people picking up half eaten burgers on the floor, a man lying on the floor with urine and feaces stained torn pants ! Is this our “ united” country ? …..how can we survive this mess !

[@robhunt-watts8908]

I lived in Tilbury 1955/56. It hasn't changed.

[@geertstroy]

Loooving this ...loooovin' , just soooo true.!!! bc even un decline they talk like sitting at the helm of a wobbbbly table .

[@valuetraveler2026]

of course it has changed

[@jonsimmons4150]

so its not brexit then???

[@TomJohnson-xl7ms]

Immigrants should see this, uk is not a gold mine, they may be better back in their countries, please think twice 💯💯💯

[@jamesswindle5253]

Wrong it a gold mine for immigrants

[@martinjenkins8359]

it's bad in the UK but a lot worse in Africa

[@robhines4537]

At least the UK is not at war, immigrants come here from war and utter deprivation, they seem to come here and create work (car washing vape and mobile shops, uber eat deliveries, etc) why don't our people do the same??

[@simonh6371]

@@robhines4537 Wow those Albanians have been walking for 80 years then, the last time there was war there was in 1945.

[@federicocatelli8785]

The alternative is way worse...

[@andrewst9797]

Poor architecture creates more poverty of all kind.

[@sodakk17]

That is true.

[@krob2327]

Take a look at Thorpe bay in Essex. A place where taste goes to die. It’s hideous.

[@simonthomas5367]

Tax the rich. Global Wealth Tax. Abolish tax free havens. Tax foreign home owners. Invest in public services. Stop abusing volunteers and charities.

[@valuetraveler2026]

never worked and wont work now

[@shauncameron8390]

And impoverish the world. Great idea!

[@JohnnyinMN]

Yeah. Tax! Tax! Tax! That’s what happened to England already without oversight. No thanks. Why don’t you be the first to work for free?!

[@simonthomas5367]

@@JohnnyinMN There's no Global Wealth Tax system in England! It's a standard income tax system, with tax havens.

[@santostv.]

Although I think the wealthy should pay their part everyone knows that they like to evade , politicians benefit from loopholes so they aren’t going to close them and everyone knows London is the landrymat of Europe, So good luck Brits

[@Saw-Mc]

I hope the sun helped out that first guy, god bless everyone and the struggle is real

[@SekhmetSecretWeapon]

depressing..

[@globaltraveller]

I’m from Scotland and, whilst we have our share of places like this, none are close to the scale of what I see happening in England. I’ve watched similar videos of places and I can’t actually quite believe it’s real. It just seems so hopeless, I hope it can be turned around. These once proud places deserve a good and prosperous future 😢

[@Kattufei135]

Because you don't have muslim

[@Connief1990]

What the hell has happened to England?… .

[@topoftherock3628]

Does Amazon pay any tax in that town?

[@tellmemore8837]

No but it doesn't matter.

[@topoftherock3628]

@@tellmemore8837 Amazon exec?

[@jonsimmons4150]

no.its offshored in ireland , with ease due to EU laws. you probably pay more tax than amazon

[@surreyscouse2873]

I wouldn't call working for an agency at Amazon a "job".

[@muckle8]

Same - slave labour at best.

[@effexon]

oh wow, warehouse uses contract work?

[@surreyscouse2873]

@@effexon you sound surprised

[@ellismeah8110]

Many councils are near bankrupt ,with no basic services

[@boota1979]

@ellismeah8110 That's what you get after 14 years of cutting services to the bone. Austerity that wonderful plan from the Tories, that achieved precisely what we are now witnessing. That and the largest transfer of wealth in history from the people of this country gives us the perfect storm.

[@brianrobinson7984]

@@boota1979 ..and then we have the alternative: Labour. Who spend silly amounts of money on the NHS but don't do anything to improve it. They pay for stupid non jobs and will import more immigrants who will either take up social housing/benefits or take up social housing, get a low paid job and get benefits whilst preventing a native from working. Thus making the unemployment, benefits, housing, healthcare, education and infrastructure issues even worse. All in the hope that all these new additions to the populous and the ones on benefits vote for them. So. Vote Tory and get austerity or vote Labour to get the third world. Great choice.

[@boota1979]

@@brianrobinson7984 Your first paragraph is precisely what is and has been happening for the last 14 years. The Tories have had 14 years to reverse what ever Labour policies they do not want and they have chosen not to do so and to make immigration in particular much worse year on year and literally wreck the NHS. From 1997-2010 the Labour Government added £51 billion a year on average to the national debt while the Conservatives have on average added £108 billion a year to the national debt from 2010-22 - more than double. Now the national debt stands at 96% of GDP, when Labour left office in May 2010 it was 74.6% considerably lower. In fact in May 2010, when Labour left office our national debt to GDP ratio was the lowest of any major developed economy. Austerity achieved precisely nothing whatsoever for you and I, this particular Tory government to their eternal shame have been at war with the British public and it must stop!

[@janetmalcolm6191]

Yes both Tory and some Labour.

[@stitchlover633]

its deliberate

[@stevenhoward3358]

All of the MPs in Essex are tories. What a great job they've done.

[@valuetraveler2026]

councils

[@debbiegilmour6171]

​@@valuetraveler2026 You're misdirecting your anger at the councils. Councils can only use council tax and business rates to raise revenue. That is a fundamentally limited funding model and not how a government should be run. They could be funded properly by the central government, but the Tories don't do that on ideological grounds.

[@krob2327]

What will labour do differently

[@debbiegilmour6171]

@@krob2327 The conservatives fundamentally are about small state and low public expenditure. While this sounds nice on paper, as we have seen over the last 14 years (and Thatcher's and Major's premierships) low public expenditure only causes anaemic economic growth and increasing poverty for the majority. Labour are the polar opposite of that so we're obviously off to a far better start.

[@stevenhoward3358]

@@krob2327 I have no idea, I don't vote for them, although it probably will be less bad than tories

[@Paws4Thought669]

The country is a hole, Corby in Northants was the same after they closed the steelworks. But not everywhere has the fortune to be tuned into a logistics hub and help people that want to work. It still never truly recovered though

[@RoyPeters1]

That was UK fault closing the steel works. Thatcher legacy. The British government wanted steel cheaper from Asia, etc. Blame the British government

[@Paws4Thought669]

@@RoyPeters1 I agree, people moved down from Scotland and they threw them under the bus

[@audie-cashstack-uk4881]

It would have worked if every school educated in investment stocks gold savings and the uk goverme g did what city of London does instead of a small finance hib in London a country full of investors wealth everywhere the thosemwealthy people spend in a service economy it's not rocket science

[@jasonwilliams7171]

Proof that the Tories hate the working class people of this once great nation.

[@nickgower8681]

You think labor will do better??!!

[@debbiegilmour6171]

​@@nickgower8681...obviously. Did councils run out of money in labour days?

[@sidsod1616]

Get yourself down to Dover, tell them you're 14 and your name is Abdul and fleeing a war zone and wham bam it's 4star hotels and free everything with spending money.

[@antifugazi]

Or maybe your name is Krill from Ukraine, oh you conveniently forgot about them huh? C-+*

[@sidsod1616]

@@antifugazi actually they are Fleeing a war zone or haven't you noticed that.

[@potnoogle5780]

Did you sleep well with your mother? ​@@sidsod1616

[@bulltraderpt]

@@antifugazi "Or maybe your name is Krill from Ukraine, oh you conveniently forgot about them" No, because their men are at home fighting, hence why you see v few of them over here. Now take your average 'istain and they are fleeing what exactly? Their women are at home, as are their children, they are here to game our system, destroy our society, so, stop being a fifth columnist.

[@Samuel-hd3cp]

Actual Sid most of them came from West Ukraine, which isn't a war zone. Most East Ukrainians fled East.

[@paulkirton8945]

I can't help thinking about the man who.had to sell his RangeRover. I can only imagine his pain.

[@bulltraderpt]

😂

[@JohnDuffy-bq8wg]

Range rovers are cheaper than a fiesta nowadays, most people scrap them now as you get more for scrap

[@geertstroy]

mmmm , quite smarmy actually... a vauxhall viva can do thoo.

[@JohnDuffy-bq8wg]

@@geertstroy you'd pay one hell of a lot more for a vauxhall viva

[@valuetraveler2026]

LOL

[@michaelelliott556]

Nearly 40 years of torys apart from a small time of labour and those people locally keep voting conservative and the sun keeps supporting them

[@jumpleadsx2]

There are lots of towns in the UK that look like that. Very depressing. Why dont they all leave?

[@DataDon-rl1mb]

To go where?

[@jumpleadsx2]

@@DataDon-rl1mb anywhere else. .

[@dallassukerkin6878]

@@jumpleadsx2 You kind of need money to be able to move and these folk are broke.

[@RoyPeters1]

​@@dallassukerkin6878yep. They're stuck. Hopefully no migrants from Iran or Afghanistan replace them

[@aboutthemetal8783]

Most who live in these places can't sell their house if they are lucky enough to own it, the rest who rent can't afford to go elsewhere, the UK has been turned into a third world country, the government says that's a lie, but anyone can see it with their own eyes, when you go through one of the many places like this take a good look at the types of shops that are in the area and how they all seem to be competing and always empty, barbers , takeaways, dodgy vape shops etc etc, the picture is a clear one, but the MSM and government are doing all they can to hide it.

[@dinitis]

Insane. Looks 3rd world

[@stitchlover633]

thats their plan

[@clearlynotwoke4929]

So many immigrants in such a small deprived town, why??

[@krob2327]

All by design

[@user-fg5fh9ps5u]

Tilbury as always been a dump

[@craigrothwell6144]

Why would they need pubs if they can not even afford a bus ride?

[@v.a.993]

I think the point about the Pubs is less about alcohol consumption and more about socialization, and how without any social outlets people in the community are further unable to thrive. How are people connecting to each other and finding happiness or sense of community among each other?

[@colinledger2459]

Yep local jobs for LOCAL people !!

[@coastliner5848]

A joke isn't it.....

[@haruhisuzumiya6650]

The bigger joke is that London centralised the power, budgets and employment​@@coastliner5848

[@nicoleta8722]

finally, the sun discusses important stuff

[@nbandpinportugal]

If only we could all live in the Cotswolds eh ?

[@w1swh1]

Why doesn't the UK Government look after it's people?😕😕

[@nicks4934]

It doesnt care. 😂

[@w1swh1]

@@nicks4934 Then the Government should expect the worst from its people, sadly, whatever political party is in power.

[@timmelia7551]

It is not the job of government to look after people. It can help create an environment where people are able to look after themselves.

[@w1swh1]

So why don’t they do just that, at least

[@stitchlover633]

they are self serving career politicians except for the exceptions

[@leslieelizabeth219]

This is a disgrace and makes me so sad.

[@andrewegan1732]

Countywide bus fares are 2 .

[@truth959]

This looks like a 3rd world country. Is UK really this poor?

[@maylok3508]

A lot of people live in different areas across the UK. The difference can be big... but I had no idea it was this big of an actual difference ? So... and everybody is busy fighting their corners, so.. Unless, you have a steady group of people, doing their bits for their community and local community, then it isn't as easy.. Actually. So.... What this small area, would indeed benefit from, is actual Windfarms.. and then get that connected to the grid, and help US, as a country to reduce the energy bills... If anything. At the very very least. And then we will get talking, actually. So.. And therefore, this would mean a maintenance team as well.. and therefore, literally would be a community energy area... My area is kind of lost now. We lost our small towns and merged together to be a devolved region, cos we too, went bankrupt... (and now, we do have pockets of depressed areas, but maybe not as bad, but we became bigger.. I remember when I was a child, it was different)... But since becoming bigger.. people are now creating small local businesses, to go back and to regenerate those old and derelict housings. So that is on going.. Some are indeed in bad shape as well. I didn't even know.. Even if we revitalise all housing, it still takes time. The issue is that, not everybody is willing to move away ?

[@ruthymccabe]

It always has been. Basic, there's London, and the rest. Twas ever thus.

[@santostv.]

If you take out London from the uk they are fd but there’s some big cities like Manchester,Liverpool ect. You can see it on uk police dramas it’s always have the “abandoned” feeling even London has it.

[@karldutton]

who would want to open a business there, the place is really grim

[@stitchlover633]

rates are probably too high

[@christopherhines2718]

holy hell i used to live there most of my youth,the ship pub looks closed,pretty much everything closed.actualy it was quite a large community,back in the eighties,many characters,big town but pretty much everybody knew everybody, it was mostly families that moved out from the east end of london.I left dock road tilbury just 22 years ago.Or should i say,i made my escape from the borough of grays thurrock 22 years ago,to netherlands.Looks like a bomb went off now!.hi to all the tilbury people who know me.Chris Hines

[@geertstroy]

It closed and the vomit vapes dissipated but the stains persist in the embossed pavement in front if le Cafe.

[@aboutthemetal8783]

This is the story of most towns and cities from the Midlands and up

[@geertstroy]

Izzit a story or a schmuxxification in process...

[@maylok3508]

It is only a small community. This is terrible !!!!! ..... Really terrible !!!.... OMG.. why does it have around 1.3 billion in debts? What has it been spent on !??!!..... Why don't they have a community bus ? And then schedule the buses to take the local communities to the nearby healthcares and such likes. And then have a green energy... windmill to generate SOME free electricities, at the very least !!!... And then have a community pub... which also act as a shop. And then some local brewings. And then use it for Sunday schools. Or even actually.... children's play areas.. As well as for hire for weddings and whatever.... I don't get it. Blimey.. for a small community like this. An actual... 12k... come on... You can have the local job centre, to have an actual job CV bank.. and headhunt and then to swap people for jobs etc !!! And to ask people to keep a savings account for rainy days !!!!... Oh come on... It is only 12k people... And then you can raise people's educational skills through time, and through fund raisings as well... and use those as a grant from your local borough.. and to take back control of your own educational budget !....

[@CNotez-uo8kp]

This is heartbreaking 💔 and all too common not only in Britain but the entire west

[@user-wo7ew3ww2n]

The sun spoke to only one person that has been in Tilbury for a long time, the others relatively new to the area

[@junkboxxxxxx]

You should have moved to Canada or Australia before you stopped Commonwealth movement. It's much nicer here. Only the berks remain

[@lukefox1006]

if there is no money for them to use on a bus, why do they need a pub?

[@WarmasAsunnedcat]

Shocking what this country has become then they say “ fight for your country” 😳

[@colinledger2459]

Let's all move to Africa or somewhere obviously it must be cheaper ?

[@RoyPeters1]

Lol

[@dmacarthur5356]

I hear Rhodesia has a very low cost of living. Too soon?

[@stephengrahn9361]

Dude cant believe that's the UK. Dadgum is there not a Lord Essex anymore? how could the government forget about that place?

[@backgroundknowledgeisevery3089]

UK national income (GDP) was £2.5 trillion last year. Obesity costs the country £50-70 billion alone. Tax avoidance costs about £50 billion. Smoking, £15-20 billion (when taking into account lost working hours). So let’s have some action on these issues from the next government.

[@user-Merovingian1980]

hahaha the rot started under blair in 1997

[@roberttopliss8512]

Tax avoidance is perfectly legal. GDP is total turnover not income.

[@josephodonnell1212]

It looks like a bomb-site in a war -zone!

[@Blaqjaqshellaq]

"But be sure to vote against the politician who's made a priority of doing something about these problems, because it's more important to Get Brexit Done!"--THE SUN

[@gaillaffer7579]

My first visit to Tilbury was in 1982 it seemed pretty grim even then. I’m from Basildon, it’s gone the same way.

[@RichardJenkins-bu4sk]

No pubs? What about the Worlds End?

[@petrolhead28]

The sun. The paper that told people to vote tory

[@chrysalis4126]

The irony of a deprived area that has consistently voted tory for years.

[@radicalcartoons2766]

I like the way the guy who says he's been there four months then goes "twenty years sgo.."! 😂.

[@BrianFairlamb]

We are screwed in this country now especially with the Tories who have been in over 14 years but bet they blame Labour nothing can be worse than this , i was told at hospital keep pushing your intestine back through abdominal wall we will be in touch you will need operation , 8 months later still waiting.

[@geertstroy]

Omg...a red travel advisory must be issued throughout the EU.

[@haruhisuzumiya6650]

The tories and labour hollowed out the country and Thatcher started the decline by reigning in the council budgets. It's an economic depression

[@allisonbyrd8523]

Apathy leads to stagnation. Vote, run for council, do something about it.

[@robertbate5790]

Typical of the nation, AUTHORITY HAS ABANDONED RESPONSIBILITY. Communities are for ed to look after themselves as best they can. Even charity shop prices have risen substantially because of the lack of income and rising fuel bills. To many jobs for the boys Sadiq.

[@martinwinther6013]

"and even if its home to a huge amazon distribution center"... THATs the real problem. The HUGE corporations that kill small stores and selfemployed traders, the accumulation of wealth, fortunes that isnt returned, re-spend back in the society. We HAVE to rethink the way we structure income. Income for ALL that is. Weve reached a point(THE point, we knew it would come eh?) where capitalism is killing itself. Making money have become so eficient that its a deadend for anyone who cant compete with eg amazon. Eff amazon, eff big corporations. We need some sort of civic salary. We need to make sure the top 1 % is actually paying their share and then some. Theyre in effect the worldwide moneysink, the black hole that absorb anything of value, never to spit it out again.. How much would you spend if you made a million?? Id spend most of it. How much do you think Amazon spend when Bezo have earned 1million?? Were lucky if we see 100£ returned into society.. We have to set a limit to the size of a given business. Dunno where it should be as a general observation, but I know it specificly when we look at individual brands/cases

[@SVEVelsen]

You have to be pretty special in the head to argue that doubling prices for people and forcing them to spend half a day shopping by going back to expensive tiny cornerstores, is somehow a good thing. It's not 1920 any longer granddad, there's no wife who's banned from work by the church who has all day to visit 19 different stores and buy 1 thing at each. People these days have to work, and work hard, to both pay taxes so you can freeload and somehow still survive ourselves. Your 30K home that you got at age 22 now costs 650K and can only be afforded at age 35 providing you both work 40 hours a week.

[@martinwinther6013]

@@SVEVelsen Thx for telling me. I guess.

[@SVEVelsen]

@@martinwinther6013 Always happy to help out senior citizens.

[@lawLess-fs1qx]

Inflation is a cruel mistress. I bought a house in 20000 and invested 30k in the SP500. 24 years later the house is up 5X. My cash is up 7X but my wages are up 1.5X. This is the stuff they don't teach in school. Wages never keep pace with inflation. Assets outperform inflation. Hence the wealth gap. Schools should be teaching Kids to turn their wages into assets every month. If you want to close the wealth gap. Wages should be index linked like pensions. It's all very simple and nothing to do with socialism vs capitalism. Governments will never stop borrowing money so we will always have inflation.

[@martinwinther6013]

@@lawLess-fs1qx Its not about socialism. Its about capitalism commiting suicide. The current system have failed - It was predicted long ago, it just came earlier than expected, at least for some areas. And the more areas we cant leave to self-control/self-adjusting via market-mechanics, the more do we need a new system.. Teaching people to turn money into assets would only accelerate the last part of the total destruction of capitalism. Theres a physical limit to how much the world can consume, theres a limit to how many stores there can be, theres a limit to how many houses you can buy. There SHOULD be a limit. If I buy 200 houses, then you wont be able to buy one.. and 198 other people wont either.. So we reach that limit so much faster when theres stores like Amazon or large chain-restaurants. They prevent regular people from gettng a foothold, or at least they make it so much harder that we no longer can talk about a free market with self-regulatory mechaincs like supply and demand, we cant talk about fair competition. The more large chains there is, the worse were off - at least with the current system. Indexed salary.. Hmm.. How do we decide the value if theres only one electrician left, and 100 people wants new powersockets in their home?? - How do we decide it if theres 1000 electricians, but only one who need new power-outlets?? Indexed salary would potentially lock us to the stoneage(or what the future would see as stoneage) - I think it would be better to look into systems like Georgism(yes, its a thing.. look it up) or the scandinavian Social Democracy model(as it was intended in the 50-70s).. One thing I know - Bigger is not always better

[@asimwaheed8201]

Very tragic, a lot of blame to go round.

[@CJ-gn8qm]

My goodness, it must be bad if one has to sell one’s Range Rover? What have we stooped to?

[@carolarmer1204]

The point he is making is that he had a good standard of living and now it's all gone to pot , you don't have to be well off to have nice things , just heavily in debt .

[@davidthomas1339]

Not to mention his motorbike and camper van! They've been sniggering at the North for decades and now they are getting a taste of it. My heart bleeds...not,

[@worthlessdollar1]

That working class man isn't laughing at anyone. He's down on his luck, but he's honest and he's trying. You are sneering at the wrong people.

[@carolarmer1204]

@@davidthomas1339 how do you know that man's been "sniggering" at the north ? I live in Leeds by the way , no what your doing is a perfect example of why working class people are divided and are treat like crap and ignored by the government , too busy resenting and sneering at people who have obviously got off their arse , when you should see that that man is one of our own . Grow up

[@lorenzomagazzeni5425]

@@davidthomas1339 I bet Blair doesn't even own a camper van.

[@colinledger2459]

Good old English Essex people. !!

[@coastliner5848]

😂😂😂

[@coastliner5848]

All 1 of him.....

[@valuetraveler2026]

the rot is in their minds

[@pat23668952]

The county's green agenda has led to the transfer of many jobs to China, where environmental regulations are different and production costs are lower.

[@colinpumpernickel2605]

The community worker talks sense.

[@oaxaca1948]

who tied that horse in the rain. take him home. I hate those kind of pictures when I can't do anything about it. like poor bony dogs and cats in the cold snow, rain, or heat. and they always show these pitiful pictures.

[@MagpieNews777]

I'm surprised the town isn't booming, what with all that strength diversity brings.

[@borisdali1711]

Apathy!!! When inhabitants do not vote a town like Tilbury will decline until they wake up and get involved in the politics start to vote again and get involved in their community again, stop blaming your elected Council get involved directly take action petition the government online ....

[@geertstroy]

The brexit benefit will mitigate the whole smear layer as was envisaged axxually....

[@RIZFERD]

Even London, Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, and so on are equally so poor. Putting my watches on my laptop desk wasn't safe, I let my room's door open while away to the kitchen downstairs, picked by my next door room housemate, a younger student, he was curly brunette Dutch, one year before I bought my own house. Putting just bought perfumes for souvenir in my duffel bag side pocket and leaving them while I was away to the toilet in a flight from Barcelona to Amsterdam, picked by one of the passengers around me. And so on.. since then I learnt to carry valuable like wallet and such never unattended. Seriously western world record is really bad, not only about colonization.

[@boomerang_911]

Wow. Sad.

[@TheBillaro]

The Daily Mail's theory is that there are people with money, they just misuse it in the UK. Ie: they get tattoos, smokes etc and that they need to make better choices and tighten their belts.

[@user-zf9jc5yz7o]

its a sad state of many towns and cities across England.

[@sandponics]

Australia should have an owner occupier rule, ban the landlords.

[@BarbaraWaterfall-ob4zv]

How. Wealthy. Is. The. Prime. Minister

[@louislamonte334]

Very sad indeed.

[@jimmyjones9780]

After completing a five-year indentured apprenticeship in Mechanical Engineering and then a degree in the same, I left the U.K. in 86 .... Have not been back since .... I am now Naturalized as a Chinese/Hong Kong citizen, where everything here in free .... I mean free health care, trains, buses, we get handouts of money every year and the water, gas and electric are subsidized .... This is China and I'm Chinese and proud of it ....

[@rogerjoesbury9410]

And where does China find the money for al the free❓🤔

[@jimmyjones9780]

Thanks, Roger, for the reply .... All the well-off people around the world invest their money in Hong Kong, because of the Sound banking system. There is Virtually no public debt, there is a Strong legal system, Low taxation rates, Ample foreign exchange reserves, Rigorous anti-corruption measures and Close ties with mainland China .... We are regularly told by the Chief Executive, that if there is a surplus at the end of the financial year, then we will get a cash handout, sometimes twice a year .... Happy now !

[@muckle8]

@jimmyjones a similar system in Russia . FairPlay to you for getting out of the asylum.

[@jimmyjones9780]

Many thanks for the reply .... The only thing I do miss about the U.K. is how it used to be ....

[@muckle8]

@jimmyjones my pleasure thx and we all miss that - the Uk is broken - the whole world is getting worse eh?

[@gemox3225]

Why doesn't Amazon invest in the place? They could offer jobs, build some parks etc.

[@jumpleadsx2]

I think they would say that all the taxes they pay should pay for a damned park.

[@eattherich9215]

Amazon doesn't pay the taxes it should.

[@shauncameron8390]

@@eattherich9215 Because it doesn't have to thanks to the government granting it tax breaks.

[@thewaywardgrape3838]

I believe that it won't just be a single local council that's the problem. Different areas of the UK have a varying number of local government levels, which is likely lead to some pocket lining. It always does!

[@Whatt787]

Disgraceful

[@thecicerus3615]

Unfortunately is coming the time of some harsh days to the great Britain .

[@jaket9559]

You know it's really bad when you've got to sell your range Rover lol really

[@MarkusDoesThings]

😂 Couldn't afford insurance

[@nicks4934]

Still voting tory? 😂

[@TheSuperPsychoKiller]

Voting or not voting has consequences.

[@VanDamage7908]

Looms like thos place needs an injection of Diversity Equity and Inclusion.... let's give em 2,000 Palestinian asylum seekers, that should help.

[@iGoldenBen]

yawn

[@harold6863]

@@iGoldenBentosser

[@iGoldenBen]

@@harold6863 Wow thanks

[@unusedsub3003]

Grow up, sheltered manchild

[@Zak-ku7sq]

What will that do? The Tories destroyed this country don't blame immigrants for this😂 they sent 20 billion to Ukraine, track and trace scam 10 billion and they destroyed the NHS.

[@suasanwatson6501]

Got lots of money for migrants though.

[@RoyPeters1]

Exactly.