The state pension is HOW MUCH???

[BeatieBourke]

Call me stupid (fair) but I've just realised how much the state pension is. £800 odd a month (£185.15pw).

As a non-means tested benefit. For EVERYONE.

I'm generally of the opinion that benefits are too low and too punitive. I usually advocate for universalism. I understand that people have worked their whole lives and paid in, and deserve a retirement. And that having pensioners in poverty does no favours to the economy or other welfare services.

But £800 a month / £9k a year for EVERYONE?? So a widower in rented accommodation with no other income or savings, £800pm. A wealthy 68 year old who's earned a 6 figure salary, has a huge property portfolio and investments coming out of their ears that pay a fortune out in dividends, £800pm. Seriously?

I understand that no party, least of all the Tories (because tory voters as a population are older) will ever go after pensions because it would be unpopular (and older people vote more generally). But in a time when the country is supposedly facing a financial "black hole" and everything else has already been cut to the bone for the last 12 years, why the hell are we paying out state benefits to millionaires?

Maybe if pensions were means tested (with a fairly high and tapering threshold) there'd be enough to pay pensions for women at 65, and more for people who haven't built up huge assets, can't afford to live, heat their homes or eat a hot meal every day in their later years. I can see the (cynical) political sense in it, but no economic sense whatsoever.

AIBU?

This is the second thread tonight seeking to take money from the older citizens!

Here's an alternative thought:

*Only give Child Benefit to the genuinely needy
*Only fund 1 child in state education - charge for every other child
*Charge for all maternity services
*Withdraw all help to first time buyers and give assistance to those needing places in retirement homes

Outrageous?
As much as targeting the elderly who have paid into the system all their working lives?

Im not saying I agree with any of these suggestions, but in fairness you need to put everything on the table!

You can put the money in savings. I know private pension has got its benefits but it’s not the only way of saving cash for when you retire

Most people aren't rich! State pension is what a lot of people rely on. My old man was a high income earner who relied on his state pension. That was his retirement plan, he paid in more than most people as a higher earner and you want to take his pension away.

You can’t take it away as they’ve paid for it

i was abroad for 10 years, and spent time as a sahm and therefore won’t get the full amount (as have not paid in enough)

Rich. Pensioners. Pay. Tax.

What is there that you don't get about this?

Yes that is the new state pension amount. Many will be getting less on the older state pension but going forward anyone who has full NI contributions will get the new state pension amount.

It's something like 70% of all government spending goes on pension payments.

Yet jobseeker benefits - which everyone moans about constantly - amount to less than 1%.

Honestly, look up the figures. It's madness. We need more young people to vote, they get a very raw deal.

Jobseeker benefits are a drop in the ocean and almost aren't worth any conversation at all as it's such a small amount of overall spend

It wouldnt be. My private pension will be less than a state pension. It makes financial sense to cash it in and spend it, and get a state pension instead. Most peoples pension pots are fairly small and act as top ups to state pension, not as an alternative.

v

The way things are going, quite a few people will die before they get their pension. More so now that it's suggested to be payable at 70 and not 67.

Because our benefits system values rich (Tory voting) pensioners over poor single parents.

I'm paying for it though - 35 years of ni payments required!

Not true. Anyone who has full NI contributions and who has not paid into a private pension before a certain date, We get less.

They need to pay national insurance as well. I’m paying an equal amount of national insurance as I am tax and according to my payslip that’s due to the fact that I’m contributing towards social care and the NHS.

Both need funding, it strikes me that’s the quickest way to raise the funds.

@antelopevalley maybe there should be a scheme where people sacrifice their valueless private pension to the state for enhanced pension benefits?

At what point would you say a person no longer meets SP criteria? Would it be if their work place pension or private pension got to 9k before retirement?

That figure is absolute bollocks. Welfare is 35% of government spending, and pensions are 45% of welfare spending.

I'd need an enormous pension pot to get the same amount of index linked pension as the basic state pension. It would need a pension pot of over £200k more like £300k plus! I think id rather not save that money and enjoy it if someone is going to screw me over for saving for the future.

I think it is you that needs to check your figures....

Umm. You can opt out of that. It would be insane to opt out but if it means you would lose your state pension then you would be insane to opt into it.

Private pensions are not valueless. We were told to take out private pensions to top up the low state pension, so many did. I am not surrendering that money.
I am in my fifties. If the government brings this in I am cashing in my private pension and spending it. That way I get state pension plus benefit top-up. It will cost the government more, but makes financial sense if this change is brought in. And I will not be the only one either.

Perhaps we should just scrap the state entirely. We could stop spending on education, stop spending on healthcare and stop spending on pensions.

Just shut it down.

200 K is not an enormous pension part I think this is an enormous problem in the UK is it people just have no intention of looking after themselves at any age.

i’ve contributed 10% of my salary into my pension since I started work it’s not been optional I set up pension funds for my kids when they were born to make sure I was looking after them from beyond the grave. It’s absolutely incomprehensible to me that you would rely the government pension.

Ireland, Netherlands, Denmark are not forking out the £7 Million a day migrant tab that we are.

Hell no.

I'm talking a much higher threshold. I dunno but, off the top of my head, maybe if you have property and investment assets worth over £750k, you get a bit less SP?

That's quite a lot of people!