To resent the U-turn on winter fuel allowance?

[BlueEyedStarling]

Perhaps I'm existing in a bubble, but all of the pensioners I know, are pretty well off, or comfortable, at least. I live and have older family in the South East, but my dad and his elderly partner, live in the North. Literally, all of them say they dont need the WFA, but happily accept it regardless and shouted from the rooftops when it was taken away from them. Just how long can the working age population keep paying for this increasing, triple-lock section of society who are, as a whole, the wealthiest amongst us? Personally, we fell through the gaps of being able to receive any child benefit (only just!), but have always been willing to accept that we didn't need it and therefore shouldn't have it. Is it that our middle-aged generation just dont shout as loudly about things that affect us? I do want to add that I am very aware that there are many pensioners who should be in receipt of the WFA and that the cut off was too low. Also, that our pensioners fair pretty badly in comparison to much of Europe. It seems criminal that it can't be means tested to benefit those who really do need it.

Was married women's low rate of national insurance compulsory - I always thought it was optional.
There are far more single adult households than there were when I was growing up couples would stay together in loveless/hatefilled marriages at least until the children were grown.
So each parent has to live somewhere big enough for the children to stay so will not have much left over for things heat food holidays and saving for retirement.
As for the boomers downsizing - where to? I don't want to live in a soulless poky retirement flat which will cost almost as much to buy as selling my house plus there would be ground rent and service charges and they are notoriously difficult to sell second hand. I could probably get a cheaper house in the arse end of nowhere - at the moment I am near shops, etc and have known neighbours for years and I have space for my children and grandchildren to stay.

How? Please explain.

How can one cohort born over a span of 20 years be entitled?

We worked for years. There was no childcare support. When l started work women weren’t allowed to join the pension scheme. Single parents were villified, so were gay people. Sexism was rife everywhere.

How can everyone born between 45 and 64 be entitled? The life experiences of those born at either end are completely different.

I supported my Millennial and Gen Z through university. Is this entitled?

I worked from leaving university until l became too ill. Payed all my taxes and NI. Is this entitled?

l struggled through horrible mortgage rates in the 80’s and 90’s. Is this entitled?

l lived under the hell that was Thatcher that felt like forever. Was this entitled?

I supported the miners and went on CND marches, Anti Nazi League matches and demos against turning grants into loans. Was this entitled?

I looked after dm when she was old and think my dc have a crap deal. Is this entitled?

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Probably because the cut off for that is 80k! So why would you need it.I don't know any pensioners who have that sort of money rolling in each year.

Yes, stamp duty

Ooh, we haven't had one of these threads for about a week 🙄

Just because you know pensioners who don't need the fuel payment it doesn't mean all pensioners are wealthy

How very narrow minded.

My PIL have moaned long and loud about this but have the funds that they've offered their son (not DH) the money to remodel his bathroom. The same son, I might add, who's in a professional job and not short of a bob or two.

I don't resent them giving their son the money just the hard done by attitude when they clearly don't need it.

No i’m not angry at pensioners who have likely paid in all their working lives. The country is going bankrupt because of the amount of civil service pension payments the country is making. Currently our local authority is paying about 16% of their total income on pensions. That’s not sustainable. The state pension was only ever intended to “top up” savings for retirement but now people are living longer in retirement those savings disappear fast and then they’re left trying to live fully off a state pension.
there are plenty of pensioners just like you in the “middle” whereby they aren’t low enough income to receive any benefits but equally don’t have large pensions. My own parents are in this situation. They were in privately rented but because my dad had a small private pension they weren’t eligible for help with housing so they were trying to pay a modest rent and all their expenditure on state pension and a small pension that is to provide for both of them until they die. They relied heavily on the winter fuel allowance but they are still above the threshold for help.

The state pension was only ever intended to “top up” savings for retirement

No it wasn’t. It was initially intended to be enough to live on.

I think it should be means tested

Absolutely! I just hope the poster is saving enough for her retirement.

I thought the same as you @Bowlandbillow about the programme last night. Who on earth thinks they can support themselves and a teenager on 1 part time wage? I did wonder by they didn’t ask her about working FT as it seemed really obvious to me.

To be honest I just can't get annoyed about a generation that has paid into the system and worked all their lives getting some financial perks at the end of it. I work hard, it's hard. we're all trying to make ends meet. That's why I think they've earnt it. The government is wasting money on so much other things such as HS2, their own expenses etc. they just need get a better grip on things.

• Not all pensioners are wealthy. It is just daft to suggest overwise

• They have not said that the payment will be restored for everyone, just that they will likely rise the income threshold where people can claim. They set it too low and single pensioner who get 12k a year can no longer receive it. Do you think people on 12k or 15K are wealthy?

I never understand why so many people in this country want a race to the bottom when it comes to supporting elderly and vulnerable or sick people.

You are right.
It should never have been set up the way it was.
The government knows how much pensioners have to live, because they are taxed if they go over a threshold, so it should be easy to means test.
My parents were just above the threshold to receive it, but it wasn't a big drama for them.

So many older people think like this. They spent their life criticising benefit recipients but somehow see what they get in old age as a right. Not a benefit. They also think the taxpayer should pay for their care home fees and their assets should be protected so they can be passed on as an inheritance. But they don’t see the irony. The cognitive dissonance is strong

Younger pensioners are the wealthiest group in the UK. And the ones bleating that they’ll freeze to death on Facebook.

I agree with you too OP. I'd be perfectly OK if they wanted to raise the threshold (which I think is essentially what they'll end up doing, it won't be completely reversed). But the truth is it equates to £16 or £25 per month, depending on circumstances and the people that aren't getting it are not freezing over this amount of money. Utility companies aren't cutting off customers who are £16/£25 short on their energy bills.

And there are still hundreds of thousands of people not claiming the PC they're entitled to.

They also think the taxpayer should pay for their care home fees and their assets should be protected so they can be passed on as an inheritance.

Do “they”? I don’t, our savings are referred to as “the care home fund”.

I am a pensioner, paid into the state all my working life, shafted by government, had no notice of having to work till 66..I think if your pensions or investments are over £20,00 a year, you don't need the winter fuel. Easy to manage, taxman knows income. I however do not have that income, but am too rich apparently to be eligible for pension credit..

Of course you will 🤣 people like you say that because you know there is no way of paying it back! You do realise that the threshold for not getting pension credits is very low! The biggest burden to the tax payer is those on benefits, so perhaps we should stop those?

Nail on the head. They seem to think that tax/nic is some kind of savings scheme where they're going to get it all back. Completely ignoring all the public services that they've used/enjoyed throughout their life, from education to roads to NHS to security/policing, to social services, etc etc. The average person takes out more than they put in, but they just don't want to hear it! The whole thing is unsustainable and has been unsustainable for decades.

The biggest burden to the tax payer is the state pension

Probably because the amount of wealth available is finite and one person having one thing means less for someone else. Working families are also under a lot of pressure from the cost of living, so it's not unreasonable that if they are expected to give up their money through taxes it is spent on the people that really need it, not those that don't.