When will people realise that pensioners have paid for their state pension.

[notsafeanymore]

Every time there is a debate about the cost of living pensioners get a bashing.
And some have also paid for a private pension.
It's people who have never worked that should be targeted first.
I'm not on about the disabled. It's people who are benefit cheats and have never worked.

Absolutely.

I’m not as I do not get free childcare. But when did I argue funded childcare was not a benefit? I simply educated you that childcare wasn’t free 🤷🏻‍♀️

Well it is not like just any other tax. As well you know.

Have to agree.

It is free. Most of it. It's a state benefit.

You only get ESA to support being IN work. JSA and especially now UC don’t run on forever and will stop if you don’t eventually move into employment. Career allowance, if family didn’t do it the state would be paying A LOT more for a professional career to do it because, guess what, that is a job and a hard one at that! Child benefit pension credits rightly recognise the contribution women make to society doing what again would be considered when done by a third party a paid job. Get off your high horse and tax the embarrassingly rich.

Yes and that’s what is really unfair

The adults who had their entire lives to plan for their retirement did plan, they planned to use their state pension which they were promised as part or all of their retirement income.No one suggested they wouldn't get it, it has taken the current greedy mollycoddled generation to come up with that idea.
Surely the new mother on stat. maternity pay could have saved before getting pregnant? Or are you suggesting that their babies are a complete surprise?

You can’t grasp that either regardless of the label.

it has taken the current greedy mollycoddled generation to come up with that idea.

What boomers?

National Insurance is not just about paying for a pension, it covers healthcare. I think there should be a reduced rate for those of state pension age, perhaps only for those on a higher income, to contribute towards healthcare.

There is also the matter of some benefits such as the bus pass.

@notsafeanymore You are wrong. They paid for the pensions of others when they paid NI. It’s a tax, not a savings scheme. Maybe try reading up in our taxation system!

The problem is that in reality pensioners have not paid for their state pension.

I've paid NI since I started paid employment in 1978 but there's no 'pot' with that cash in it. I was paying for by parents and grandparent's pensions. My kids are paying mine.

In a sense it's like Ponzi scheme and sooner or later what's paid in by today's workers will be less than is needed for the pensions bill.

Ok. So what's the solution? You can moan as much as you like. Are we going to bring in compulsory euthanasia for people aged 70? I retired early and am not receiving anything other than my work pension atm. However I do huge amounts of childcare for my grandchildren to help my children. Do I want to do it? No, I want to be swanning about enjoying myself. Life sucks. That's just the way it is.

If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, it's a duck.

NIC stopped being a "stamp" decades ago when it first started being variable and linked to income levels. When it first came in, it was literally buying a fixed price stamp every week, no link at all to income level, same cost for all, which at that time was actually a pretty small cost.

Over time it evolved into a tax when it became linked to income, i.e. the more you earn, the more tax (NIC) you pay.

@ArcticBells how come you didn’t get family allowance/child benefit?

Eh? Why are 'new mothers' (or parents in general) exempt from planning and saving for children? Did they all have immaculate conceptions?

Or is it a case of the state should provide no matter what?

If anyone has a child based on the stat mat pay they will get, they are a fool.

You don't pay NI when you retire.

Are we going to bring in compulsory euthanasia for people aged 70?

I prefer means testing

ESA is a sickness benefit for those unable to work. If in the support group it can be claimed indefinitely ( the contributions based ESA ).

But pensioners don't pay NI so they currently have a lower tax burden. Perhaps its the way to go but they will squeal.

Many pensioners are very wealthy and certainty don't need the state pension but there is a sense of 'I've paid in so will get something out of the system". Reality is most people take out more than they put in., especially if you include education and healthcare.

Op, have you changed your view after reading replies? Should I be able to get state pension, I will feel grateful as opposed to entitled. I'm a higher earner but even I know I haven't paid for a state pension, it comes from taxation of others including corporations, which is why I'm grateful if I receive it.

@Differentforgirls are you capable of debating without personal attacks? It makes you look even more foolish…

I do work but even if I didn’t that has no relevance to the posts I have made on this thread. What is your excuse?

Ultimately we need to be encouraging people to have children because with the way the birth rate is going there won't be anyone who is going to be paying NI to cover the pensions

Food is cheaper, and indeed so are white goods and furniture. Unfortunately housing is very significantly more expensive, and is a much bigger proportion of people's outgoings than the things you cherry picked mentioned.

I'm not sure why you've compared my nursery fees to the state pension - are a lot of pensioners trying to pay nursery fees out of their pension?