If Iain Duncan Smith did survive a week on ?53, it would prove nothing | Zoe Williams

I can live for 53 pounds a week? Things started well enough when I can collect a certain amount of capital and a friend to dinner

The last time I looked, the demand for Iain Duncan Smith live € 53 per week had 435,596 signatures, but I'd be surprised if there were half a million to date. The arrogance of man, their urgency, "Because I Said So" delivery, prompt response to almost everything he says. "Yeah Then prove it"

Journalists and politicians have done this for as long as I can remember. It has always been a staple of the socially conscious family, his mother eats a week in a pounds per day (which is how the feminist left to say "I Plan"), or your father sleeps badly charity (the coldness of what is just the cruelty of the act, spent the night next to people who do not).

Brian Sewell tried to live in a state pension at the end of the 90s (it was almost possible, he said, as long as you have an Aga). More than a decade ago, Matthew Parris, and another Conservative MP, lived for a week at 26.80 pounds, the premium rate at the time, the world in action. It was 1984, and unemployment benefits were at the lowest level relative to income, which had been for 30 years. Now, of course, are even lower (22% of median income in 1979, 15% in 2012). In its sixth day, Parris had 61p left of heat and light, and I was wondering if sitting in the dark and go to bed early.

Keep in mind, with all of these experiments, there are no children to worry about, which is all most people on the benefits of anxiety.

? 7.57 per day to cover food, electricity, gas, water, telephone, debt service, travel, clothing and emergency renewal.

emergency had no debt, with service and renewed without clothes. I took all the food of children outside their own interest of the child (which is doable, but spartan, is mainly based on plastic containers of green peppers for consideration, and does not extend to any type of meat).

gas and electricity was 4.36 pounds per day, I spent ? 1.07 on mobile. I do not spend money on transportation, as it cycled everywhere, but I had a great on the bike over the last five years (500 € on the same bike, two pairs of shoes, taco tacos peddles Service), so I called as 54p per day, plus 40 pence per day for a TV license.

This leaves me ? 1.19 for everything else, or 5.95 euros for five days, so I spent 99p on rice, orange lentils on 89p, ? 1.30 for a giant bag of onion and garlic and was Lidl. € 2.77 to left.

The first night, a friend took me to dinner. It was, coincidentally, wrote this article for the Daily Mail, five years ago. He said he wandered out of his office, pretending to have left his bag on the table and ask people to buy a coffee. She went to many parts, sofas, and was outraged when, at the opening of a burlesque club, has taken delivery of pornographic letters instead of

vol au vent

• Therefore, these experiences are worse than useless. They ignore the capital, while at the same time, trade in it for everything - it was not many people willing to buy your coffee if you do not already know, and use half of them, it is unlikely that someone long-term unemployment would be invited to a burlesque party. Damn you, and its capital, which thundered with my mouth full of chicken livers had not paid.
• The next day, I was hooked on everything with my own children, I could not go anywhere, because, despite their bus fares were free, it was less than 3p a bus ride back, and could not cope with the incessant demand small perishable.

So we were in the house, and the youngest of toilet paper strewn stairs, and explained that costs money and therefore should not be wasted. Then my father wrote a story about Obi-Wan Kenobi, photocopied a number of times, and said: "I do not know if you come with me, but I thought we could go out and sell them to people."

So I had to explain the probable market value of a rare Star Wars Accurate, which almost broke me.

Wednesday I came to town on my bike, had no lentils background noise, because I was embarrassed, I felt dizzy, the afternoon bought Lucozade one without thinking. Wham - ? 1.99
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