Entrepreneur Simon Squibb shares his tips to making millions with mega-fan Raees, who is 14 and has experience of homelessness. Also this week, we have a breakdown of what you need to know about the rebellion against the benefit cuts.

Good morning. Welcome back to Survival Guide. I’m Isabella.

Do you have a dream? What would it take to make it happen?

That’s what millionaire entrepreneur Simon Squibb asks when you meet him. He first started a business when facing homelessness as a teenager, and now he has millions of followers online and has created a brand where he helps people achieve their goals – giving advice, the occasional investment and a wide-reaching platform for their ideas.

I recently met Squibb in our Big Issue office but it wasn’t me who was interviewing him (or asking him for tips to make my dream happen). It was mega-fan 14-year-old Raees, who was involved in our special edition of the magazine this week created entirely by teenagers. It was a chance for them to come up with whatever content they wanted and to have their voices heard.

When Raees told us he wanted to interview Squibb, who by a stroke of luck had already contacted us to say he wanted to get involved with our work, we knew we had to make it happen.

Squibb was keen from the start, and he decided he wanted to surprise Raees – a feat easier said than done, but we managed to pull it off. Raees came down to our office from Bolton for a workshop between the Big Issue team and all the young people, and Squibb was also free on that day to pop into our office for the big surprise.

Raees, who like Squibb has experience of homelessness, wants to be a millionaire. So after getting over the initial overwhelm of seeing his hero in the flesh, they sat down to chat about Squibb’s journey to making his millions and what steps Raees could take to do the same.

More of Squibb’s tips on how to make money shortly. 

Also this week, read to the end for an update on what’s going on with the government’s plans for benefit cuts and why the whole thing could be blocked by a group of rebel Labour MPs.

If you’ve got a story to share, we want to listen. Get in touch at isabella.mcrae@bigissue.com or share your story here.

‘Money will not make you happy, but having money allows you to have choices’

“You don’t need money to start a business. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ask. But you don’t want to keep asking people, and they keep saying no. That’s going to waste energy and time. You might need investment in the future, but to get started, you don’t,” Simon Squibb said.

When he was facing homelessness as a teenager, Squibb started by cleaning gardens. But he didn’t realise how hard gardening was, and he’s not a very good gardener. So he took the money he made from cleaning gardens and he started to hire other people to help him, and his first business grew from there.

His mission is now helping other people achieve their dreams. Raees explained that he wanted to make millions to help his family, and then eventually help other people like Squibb, but the entrepreneur explained that you don’t need money to help people. And actually, it can be a smart business idea to do good. 

Raees, who wants to create a clothing business, could for example go into a charity shop, find an item and revamp it to increase its value, and then sell it for double and give the money back to the charity shop. That’s great content for a social media video, and then he could grow an audience and make money that way.

“Money will not make you happy, but having money allows you to have choices. It can make you happier, but I know people that are rich who were unhappy before they were rich and after they got rich, they are even more unhappy. I think what makes you happy is having a purpose, and often the purpose is bigger than you,” Squibb said.

Read the full interview and tips from Simon Squibb to make money here.

In case you missed it: Here's what you need to know about the benefit cuts

Last week, I wrote to you about how I met a group of Labour MPs rebelling against the disability benefit cuts. This week, that rebellion has got significant and, in some rare good news about the welfare system, could actually mean that the reforms are blocked. 

More than 100 MPs have backed an amendment to the government’s new bill which would mean the cuts have to be paused until there is proper support in place and there has been a consultation with disabled people. Essentially, this would kill the cuts.

It has to go through a few stages first. The speaker Lindsay Hoyle has to choose it as an amendment – and there would be outcry if he didn’t. And then the amendment has to win the support of the majority of MPs.

With more than a quarter of Labour MPs backing the amendment, and with the Liberal Democrats, SNP and Green Party also opposing the disability benefit cuts, Keir Starmer may be reliant on votes from Conservative MPs to ensure that the bill would continue to progress – and they may not back Labour’s benefit cuts either.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said her party will support the Labour bill if he agrees to three conditions: that the government will reduce the welfare budget, to get people into work and not to have tax rises.

There’s a chance Starmer will withdraw the bill to prevent facing a humiliating defeat. Here’s what you need to know from our stories this week.

Could the government's disability benefit cuts be blocked by Labour MPs? 

Here's what the rebellion means for the government's plans. Get the breakdown.

Revealed: Majority of PIP claimants with heart disease, arthritis and Crohn's at risk of cuts. Government data obtained by the Big Issue shows that, if the cuts to disability benefits go ahead, people with severe health conditions could stand to lose PIP. Read more.

'I was barely existing before PIP': Benefit claimants say they're 'terrified' of Labour's cuts. We spoke to individuals who face fears that they could lose their benefits if the government goes ahead with its benefit cuts. Get the story.

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