Can’t just be me who is sick of the moaning about the private school VAT and winter fuel payments

[TruthorDie]

The moaning about them seems to be never ending. So tone death and indulgent on both counts. Not sure which is worse. A friends mum was ranting on social media earlier about winter fuel payments being stopped and how “worried about being cold” she was. Bad news is Lynn you haven’t needed to work since 1989, married to an oil exec and have had lots of the good life. I’m sure all of your Florida holidays keep you warm enough!

Bright children can get on anywhere, my siblings and l went to a comprehensive. We all have a couple of degrees, one of us has a PhD so it didn’t hold us back too much in life. Before anyone comes at it from the neurodiversity angle then l am and l wouldn’t be surprised if my younger sibling isn’t

Imagine If the Tories had scrapped the WFA, the jibes that Kier Starmer would have trotted out. Some pensioners are well off and don't need it, some really aren't well off and are just over the threshold so won't get it, some of those will die.

As for VAT on school fees the downsides of this will take time to work through the system and it won't be the 'big' win people are crowing on about.

I wouldn't be surprised if they start charging for GP appointments.

i hope the fuel costs wont be hugely expensive this winter.
i was concerned for my dm and looked into what she had coming in but she has too much for pension credit
she will be worried.

https://x.com/exRAF_Al/status/1822749909864390890

Seems that Sir Keir Starmer agreed with you on this not so long ago as well…

I guess both cuts and VAT are easy to impose. Neither affect me personally but I think removing benefits for pensioners is a dangerous road to go down.

I just posted a video of him talking about this not so long ago when he was in the opposition party..

People have very very selective memories.

🙄🤬

I 100% believe that Labout are high on their own supply at the moment, and resent the rural heartlands for keeping them out of power for so long. So any financial penalties will be aimed at traditional Tory voters. Certainly seems that way so far. I don't have skin in the game as not young enough for school kids and not old enough for WFA.

I agree there are a lot of struggling pensioners who don't get pension credit.

I think the issue is to means test it in any other way (ie dedicate a staff force to managing eligibility) would cost so much the savings would be lost.

But yes awful for those who are suffering

is especially shocking when you take into account the fact that the winter fuel payment is already so low that thousands of pensioners die every winter of hypothermia- and that is even now with very mild winters caused by global warming.

Really ? I have worked in the NHS for 24 years, I have not seen one person die of hypothermia. The only cases I have seen are street homeless people or those who fall in to rivers or are pulled from the sea. If thousands were dying I think I might have seen a few more cases.

I do love the ONS about 40 a year:

https://www.beta.ons.gov.uk/aboutus/transparencyandgovernance/freedomofinformationfoi/deathsfromhypothermia2019to2023

But i agree op re the tax on private schools.

Don't worry, Labour's definition of "the rich" will probably sweep you and everyone else too before long, and you'll get to join in with the sputtering and outrage

My dad lives in council sheltered housing it isn’t cheap because they add charges for various things. They aren’t all rich my dad himself has a very small pension which pushes him over the tax threshold and not eligible for pension credit.

He really needs that payment. Not all pensioners are loaded. Many are not! I’ve complained about it all with him. He worked since 15 and he deserved a comfortable retirement , not financially but physically.

My mum is impacted by it, not all pensioners are rich. She worked for the NHS for 45 years, retired at 70 when she was diagnosed with cancer. She is just over the limit for pension credits so she won't get the winter allowance and she really relied upon it. Before that she had budgeted £50 a week (after bills) for spending on frivilous things (coffee, seeing friends). She was a homeowner but at the time of separating with my dad she had a brain haemorrage. The family house was sold and we moved in with family whilst she recovered which took a very long time.
Alot of people will feel disgruntled about losing the allowance when the cost of living is so high, things are already tough.
Life is hard for lots peope OP, but maybe not the people you are friends with. I prefer to look at it with empathy, compassion and kindess.

I'm empathetic to both. School fees aren't just paid by the wealthy and many children with SEN are in private school. And many pensioners live just above the threshold for winter fuel payments. When it comes to things like this, critical thinking helps rather than just applying your opinions to your own very narrow experience of things.

They don’t manage that’s the simple answer. If Sen needs are severe enough that the child can’t cope in the mainstream school they are allocated, parents don’t have the ability to fight and go to tribunal then very often the child ends up out of school completely which then limits their life chances. I had the ability to be able to out my own case together snd go to tribunal so my son is in a specialist school, I know of someone else who rather than fight the system paid to send their child to a small local private school with small classes and more individual attention. Someone else I know didn’t have the means or ability to do either of these their child is still on roll at the local mainstream but hasn’t attended since year 7 and he’s just going into year 11

"tone death"

😂

It's just you! There are people who have lost the payment due to being a few pounds over or those who have savings. In many cases, their savings are for anything that goes wrong with their home.

If it's mean tested then your friend should be covered though?

I'm sure there are pensioners just above the cut off line but where do you draw the line? I think it costs more to means test than just to give the money to all pensioners. I think we should be turning our attention to making sure everyone who is eligible for pension credits applies for them.

Yes, someone on just state pension ie worked to pay their stamps but don't have much/any private pension as they weren't mandated and employers largely didn't pay until quite recently will be £3 over being able to qualify for pension credit. Someone who didn't get all of their stamps will be better off as they're eligible for other things too under PC. It's unfair, and although winter fuel shouldn't necessarily be available to all, having this low of a threshold is unfair.

Dont you just loathe the sneering from some
people..

Nasty at it’s finest.

Let’s wait to see what Rachel Reeves has up her sleeve for the October budget.

It’ll be a nightmare.

ODFOD ... My mum is just a few pounds over the limit. As if it's not bad enough losing the allowance and potentially having to choose between heat and food she's now got absolute tone deaf cretins like you calling her 'indulgent"

As it happens I've decided to give it to her myself. It will have an impact on me but not enough that I can possibly watch my own mother be cold because of Labours desire to punish anyone who's been successful in life

Pension credit only kicks in at £218 so someone could be on £11336 and not get pension credit if they own their own home and don’t have rent.

council tax for a band b property where we live with a 25% discount for living alone is £1354 so that already takes a big chunk away before paying for anything else

What utter nonsense ! A pensioner on PIP or AA (£72.65 pw) and the basic state pension . (£221.20 pw) Living in their own mortgage free home could also have £20k in savings (16k. cut off doesn't apply for pension credit) and a small Occ Pen of £294 a month coming in ... and STILL get £0.27 p Guaranteed credit, £17 pw savings pension credit, £35 pw council tax discount .. that's an income of £413 per WEEK ! ... and STILL be entitled to WFA .

Pension Credit applicable amounts and savings tapering is extremely generous. The amount of allowable income can be really quite high. Especially if someone is in receipt of AA/DLA/PIP and or pays rent.

I would Urge all pensioners to put their details into the turn2us benefits calculator.

My own parents had £725 per week coming in (2x State Pension. 2 x low rate Attendance allowance, + 2 x Occupational Pensions) plus £20k in savings.
Became they were both disabled and were caring for each other.. they were still entitled to £5+ per week in Guaranteed Credit and 19 in savings credit. Which would mean (if they were still alive) they would get WFA

To not be entitled to it - means you really do have a very comfortable income and can pay fuel costs like the rest of us .