+1 make a list and buy it for him. This is the only way to be sure the money will be spent on what you want it to be spent on (the essentials). — Knossos 26 secs ago

I agree. Putting it in writing will probably come as a shock and will certainly convey that you are serious. I doubt it will make him mend his ways, but at least it will make him think twice about it. From my experience, people also appreciate the clarity that comes with a written agreement: if you say, for example, that the money must be paid back within 5 years, then they know where they stand. — Michael Kay 36 secs ago

@justathought added "e recently lost his job and although there is no worry about his residency or physical health and wellbeing the extra money for things like car maintenance, job searching, bills, general quality of life costs and the ability to buy things that will help in the long term would clearly be a massive help to him." to answer — Jesse 7 secs ago

@justathought updated question, short version is he lost his main job and his physical needs are not dependent on this money — Jesse 1 min ago

This also appears to be the same advice as an earlier answer. If you agree with that answer, please upvote it instead :) Otherwise, please expand your answer to explain how it offers something over existing ones. — Em C 1 min ago

"without verifying what he's buying, I'm not sure how you'll be able to enforce this rule" The simplest way is to say "I'm giving you $x, that should last you 2 weeks, right?" and have him agree that yes, it should. Once he's agreed, do not give him any more until the 2 weeks are up (unless he can show that there is a genuine and unforeseeable emergency that means he needs more). If he spends all the money in the first three days, just say "we agreed that it would last you two weeks; maybe you should be more careful with your spending" and stick to your two-week rule. — anaximander 25 secs ago

@anaximander I agree with ArtOfCode, setting guidelines like that may well be another skill the OP makes use of. I definitely think you should expand it as an answer. (Even if it doesn't fully fit with the OP's situation, as the OP's brother's purchases may not be a "last x time" purchase, it can be a very useful answer for others in the future with similar issues.) — Kendra 1 min ago

The question got put on hold, so I can't put this in an answer, but a lot of what is meant by "accepting people as they are" is in recognizing that you only see one side of them, but that they are a full complicated human being. When we fail to accept someone, we often trap them in our image, not letting them change or show us a new side. — Cort Ammon 27 secs ago

@Jesse How exactly does it not help your goal? Your objective is (as I understand it) to get him to take his financial matters and your proposed conditions seriously. Putting it the agreement in writing and getting him to sign it will show him "this is serious, my brother isn't joking around". Even without the legal aspect, it makes it a serious formal agreement. — Pharap 1 min ago