Obviously it hasn't left behind the death and destruction that Katrina and Rita left behind, but it's caused incredible pain and hardship for communities all across this country -- communities that have seen too many jobs disappear, too many businesses close, too many middle-class families who are just barely making it.

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That leaves governments with the choice of cutting benefits for all, thus causing hardship for those who truly cannot find work, or of subsidising people who are not motivated to take jobs.

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And young people who start down the wrong path and don't have anybody to steer them straight aren't just consigning themselves to a life of financial hardship, they're consigning all of us to an economy that's less competitive and a nation that doesn't fulfill its promise.

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She added that a hardship fund could help some of those affected but it would not cover all the cuts in housing benefit in the borough.

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An Ofgem spokesman said that if it emerged that not all former customers could be sent rebates, their refunds would be added to the hardship fund instead.

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