Pensions… again

Your REAL question should be, BTW, why aren't MORE State benefits subject to the triple lock?

Because pensioners vote and can be relied on to vote in their own best interests.

It's an election year OP in case you hadn't noticed.

But why try to equalise with European counterparts when those European counterparts do not on the whole have an employer pension like we do here, and they have contributed far, far more to their state pension than any pensioner in the UK. You are comparing apples and pears when comparing EU state pensions to UK state pensions.

You seem to be overlooking the fact that future pensions will be paid by future tax payers who won't exist if people don't feel economically safe and secure enough to have babies.
There is no pot. You paid for previous generations pensions and will rely on those who come after you to pay your pension in the future.

I am glad that pensioners are getting a decent increase that is exceeding the rate of inflation. Broadly, I am in favour of the triple lock, for now. It is a mechanism that is gradually bringing the state pension in line with its European counterparts. However, I am not sure I support the triple lock indefinitely. At some point though, the working population will wake up and cut through the hysteria to see that the annual increase in SP is the best measure out of 3, RPI AEI or 2.5%. They are guaranteed to be at least as good an increase as inflation or earnings, and if both are low, 2.5%. This is a good way of comparably "equalising" SP, but eventually there will be a crossover point, and the additional funding required by the tax payer to fund this snowball will hasten the increase of SPA or perhaps cause tax rises that will disproportionately affect workers, who won't see the a "triple lock" in their salary increases.

Now why would we think this? - you are half the age of many posters here,
in a different stage of life completely, in your prime possibly, not considering
that pensioners too, pay out, still have fuel bills to pay, food, durables, travel, clothes, whilst volunteering, propping up charity shops, grandchild/ren care,
coach companies on the road, street markets alive, etc., putting back if and
when possible.
A civilised country takes care of its elders.

Early years centres are a luxury particularly when you consider most families are now getting free childcare and thus most of the facilities early years centres would provide anyway.

What aren’t luxuries are a decent nhs, decent dentistry, decent mental health services….

https://fullfact.org/economy/millionaire-pensioners/

Oh. That again if you can't see why that's simplistic thinking I don't think I can be bothered to explain it to you.

Ridiculous straw man question. Of course Millionaires aren't more deserving than poor kids, but that's not what is happening, it's much more complex than that - but you keep on trading soundbites, it's much easier than trying to think about the whole picture.

So because 1 in 4 pensioners are apparently millionaires the other 3 in 4 should be punished regardless?

@GoodnightAdeline I'm interested to see your comment that it would be better for the government to spend extra money reopening early years centres. Why? You seem to have overlooked the fact that adults can decide whether they can afford to have children and have choices in how they raise them if they do decide to have them. Early years centres are a relatively new provision and there are other options available to parents. Unfortunately, no-one has a choice about ageing and, assuming people live into their late 60s, and have paid NI contributions for over 40 years (50 years in my case) they have the right to expect to have a basic minimum to live on. Many older people have worked their entire lives and have scrimped and saved to get their homes, with mortgage interest rates which people of your age can't conceive of.

A plan for not keeping the triple lock and safeguarding the state pension from being eroded.

There is a recruitment crisis in many areas of the public sector.

Worsen their pension conditions. Yeah. That will help.

Do you not get basic maths. 3 in 4 are not millionaires.

So yet again what is your plan? A proper plan, not some vague, utterly ridiculous suggestion such as only those getting pension credit having a non eroded pension.

Nobody is arguing for children to live in poverty.

A system that takes money from working people during their working lives and gives it back when they retire is not, however, responsible for making children live in poverty. There are many reasons for child poverty, but that is not one of them.

Everyone who needs the help deserves the help

I have never voted Tory. I voted for PR in the PR referendum - we need electoral reform but we are stuck with what we have, and moaning about governments doing what people who voted for them want is surely not a good look?

Indeed. We are sleepwalking into a public sector pensions time bomb, the government knows this but has its head in the sand. Terrifying.

But if the government suggests trimming public sector pensions to something more affordable there will be uproar.

So you’re blaming older voters for voting now.