The tide of overwhelming idiocy cannot be held back ....

Emailed in by Bob E:

Food vouchers to provide emergency help but prevent spending on alcohol

Campaigners raise alarm as English councils replace cash loans with payment cards for people facing short-term financial crises

But so long as there is "an in" for the private sector and the LA's use the now dispersed funds "very wisely" - "great idea" .. 

The cost of administering each of the 150-plus new welfare assistance schemes is typically equivalent to around 20% of the value of the entire local fund. Several authorities, including the Welsh government, have outsourced the running of the voucher schemes to private contractors.

Yeah, it all stands up "We have no choice but to move to vouchers because the amount the government is providing local authorities to run the replacement local schemes is less in total than that previously provided under the centrally funded Social Fund, and because it is complex running and monitoring a voucher/payment card scheme, we had no choice but to create some complicated and expensive authority run scheme or outsource the running of it, with both immediately further reducing the already reduced amount available by a further up to one fifth" ...