To think 71 is too old for state pension age?

[winterwonder1]

This isn't just for people who are 21 now - that's for people born after 1970 - so 55 now. I can't imagine being fit enough to do my job at 71.
DWP State Pension age will have to rise to 71 says report | News Shopper

Thought it was obvious I meant a general "you", rather than "you" "you"... but we as a populace got what we voted for. Decades too late to start whining where's the pension fund.

No that is the level for the old state pension that older people get if they have paid NI for 40 years. I think to be accurate about £8600 a year. People retiring since 2016 get more.

The full state pension is currently £11,502 p.a, if you get this amount you are not eligible for pension credit. You have to have at least 35 years of NI contributions to get this amount.

Absolutely, even countries like South Africa (whose economy has always been on its knees) and India (whose State hasn’t given a shit about anyone who isn’t wealthy since Gandhi) have State pensions. They are totally inadequate, but even they recognise that there should be one. The UK is the 5th richest country in the world FFS!

And it does irritate me that so many people do not know that anyone who retired before 2016 only get £8600 as a basic state pension. Some individuals get more, because at one time you could make additional NI contributions, that brings the state pension up to its current level. But you had to pay extra for this.

I agree. Poverty is an ideological, political choice. It's throwing red meat to the masses - the ruling classes are saying 'look, stop complaining, you're better off than most people'. And sadly most people just accept this. So long as they're better off than someone else, they think they're doing OK.

But for those on that pension, if they have no other provision ,, they should be applying and getting pension credit, which will then make them better off then those on the £11,500 pension as they then get the WFA, the free tv licence and it opens up other benefits . Pension credit can be claimed for income of up to £11k

oops. posted twice

But you're not paying tax and NI to get back exactly what you paid in - you are paying towards the welfare state. It is all of our money, and we don't know when or whether we are going to need it, but it's supposed to provide a safety net for everyone. It stands to reason, much like insurance, that it's not going to work if you think you will "get your money back" in the end. It is there for those who need it. It pays for services we may or may not going to need, but we want to know that it is there if we do.

We should feel proud to pay tax and NI and we should be proud of and support the welfare system. If there isn't enough money for the services we need, then we have to do with less or put in more. But maybe you can hear I'm Scandinavian? That's how we feel about paying tax/NI, but I rarely hear this sentiment in the UK.

@mollycoddle77 I disagree. NI contributions are for a state pension. People with not enough NI contributions sometimes pay extra NI so they get more state pension.

I retired before 2016.
I was lucky in that my retirement age was 62.
My state pension is even slightly less than £8600 because I was in the NHS scheme and was contracted out ( which I hadn't realised until I retired, my own fault for not checking).
My NHS pension pays roughly the same amount monthly as my state pension.
I don't feel hard up because I own my house outright so no rent or mortgage.
The pension isn't as generous as some people think though and it looks like it's going to get worse.
If means testing did come in there would be less incentive to save for old age.
Someone above said that those who really needed it would get it. While there are some people who through ill health, caring responsibilities etc. really will need it because they were in no position to save, it is also possible to make yourself really need it by not saving and spending freely-so unfairness and resentment start to surface.
There are more and more people living with chronic mental and physical health problems and smaller numbers of working population who have problems like affording housing. It isn't a good outlook.

It's been raised to 71 so the Government don't pay out a pension. The hope is people die before they reach this new pension age. Just my take on it🤷‍♀️

You’re wrong. NI contributions go towards many things including the NHS.

Some private pension don't allow you to retire j til the state retirement age so many people will be forced to work until 71 to have any money

This will be the argument for us mugs the population continuing to pay NI contributions even after the state pension is dropped. Really, if they keep moving the goalposts so that retirement is further and further away, we should get larger pensions as a result of paying more NI contributions. But that won't happen.

i know the money is not ring fenced. But our state pension is based on years of NI contributions. Individuals pay money to increase their years if some are missing.

NI contributions have NEVER been for pensions, Its a general tax, and we choose a government to spend our taxes wisely because we wont like paying tax

So for decades, we relied on the younger generation to fund the older generations pensions. Now we have more elderly claiming pensions for more years then ever envisaged , being shored up by a generation who don't want to work and claiming working benefits

Seriously , question to you - how much more of your wages are you prepared to pay in tax to pay for a welfare state for all, or who are you going to screw over? Cos that's where we are

Originally NI was set up as what it says it is-a National Insurance scheme. You paid in and you were covered for sickness benefit, unemployment benefit, maternity benefits and retirement pension.
Changes to the system have muddied the waters but the NHS is still funded 80% from general taxation and about 20% from NI.
It is ringfenced in that it isn't used for other projects like building schools but these days, behind the scenes government borrow to and fro from NI to general taxation if there is excess or shortfall.
I essence though it is still seen as an Insurance scheme with paying in and entitlement.
With the ageing population and reduced workforce it will probably be subsidised more from other taxation or the benefits will have to be reduced.

If the state pension went, everyone who has paid additional NI contributions would need to be refunded. There would be a class action. And they would win.

No. Because it's not a pension fund or a savings scheme. And why only those who paid extra?

That is if you were contracted out. I still have people retiring now who don’t get the new full pension because they were contacted out. That means some of their NI contributions went into a private pension which should provide them with an equivalent pension. (That point is another whole thread). And some people who were only contracted out for a short period and have been able to make up missing years since then now get the full rate even though they were contracted out at some stage.

Wrong!!

• "The full basic State Pension under the old system is currently £169.50 per week for people who have all the qualifying years of NI contributions for their date of birth.

https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/pensions/state-pension/basic-state-pension/

So £8814 a year. That is with full NI contributions. Anyone retiring since 2019 with full contributions gets more. The basic state pension is now more generous, although you get it later.

And loads of us who will retire in next 10 to 20 years will get less state pension because of contracting out. This was never explained. The government said that we paid a bit less NI as a way of encouraging people to get private pensions.

Not a chance am I working till 71, I'd go on the sick before that happens.

It hasn’t been raised to 71.