The documentary focuses on a street in the Winson Green district of Birmingham where 90 per cent of residents are said to be claiming benefits.
Since being aired on Monday, it has prompted a police probe after residents were shown to be involved in criminal activity, and over 700 complaints from viewers about how 'unfairly' it portrays people on the poverty line.
However it also provoked a furious reaction from viewers, with one tweeting:
“People like these on benefits street deserve to be ate alive by pigs #scum”.
Now former Birmingham bus driver Arshad Mahmood has started a petition against the series, voicing his concern over how much ‘hatred’ the programme had already created.
In his appeal for signatories to his petition, Mr Mahmood, 42, said:
“Having lived in Birmingham, not far from where the program was made, I can honestly say this show is not representative of people in the area."
"I have worked for 33 years but after major surgery am now unable to work and receive some benefits. The backlash and abuse of social networks towards people on benefits as a result of this show has shocked me. This is not a responsible approach from a public service broadcaster.”
Benefits Street attracted an audience of 4.3m, making it Channel 4’s most successful programme in more than a year.
A channel 4 spokesperson yesterday confirmed they would not be pulling the rest of the series, explaining:
“Filmed for more than a year, this fair and balanced observational documentary series is a fair reflection of the reality of life on a street where the majority of households receive benefits - and in an area of Birmingham that has had the highest rate of unemployment in the country for the last eight years,” she said.
“It is a sympathetic, humane and objective portrayal of how people are coping with continuing austerity and cuts in benefits.”
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