Changes to Pension Credit.

[HelenaDove]

From 15 May Pension Credit couple rate will only be paid if both are over 65

twitter.com/JosephineCumbo/status/1084920673296961536

www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2019-01-14/HCWS1249/

And if i hadnt searched you would not have said anything about your own situation.

You joined this thread without mentioning that you are also claiming something you are perfectly entitled to.

Yet you seem to have a problem with others doing the same.

you have a working partner bringing in income you don't need topping up as all income is considered joint. If you have a working age partner that is fit and well and able to work then under the new system they are expected to look for work.

Well those younger people wouldn’t be getting pension credit so wont be losing anything. It’s still remains the fact that some older people will be penalised under this new rule.

I was referring to younger people who are working btw. I don’t see that older people should be penalised for their partners employment status

why should a healthy working non care responsibilities person under pension age be able to claim a pension rate

Correct me if im wrong but i dont think that's the issue.

I think the issue is that the partner of pension age is having the pension credit taken away just because theyre with a younger partner.

I agree with pp whp said pensioner should get pension credit and younger partner should get half of what a couple would be entitled to.

Its bullshit.

Age UK statement.

ageukblog.org.uk/2019/01/17/why-the-government-is-wrong-to-change-the-pension-credit-rules/

I agree with pp whp said pensioner should get pension credit and younger partner should get half of what a couple would be entitled to.

It was me that said that and I still think it is the most sensible solution. Nobody has yet told me why this wouldn’t be fair until the working age person finds work / gets carers allowance etc.

I cant speak for others in this situation but i would have no objection to that as long as it was executed without any cock ups.

PIP mobility means that Carers Allowance cannot be claimed It has to be PIP daily living.

Are there many that just get a mobility award though ? Surely if mobility is so poor as to warrant PIP there will most likely be difficulties washing/ dressing/ cooking a meal as well and so possibly enough points for a daily living award too ?

Not for people who dont work in the field Babyroobs

I have not worn nail polish for many years I cant as the fumes affect DHs airways. Doesnt bother me but thats an example of how bad his lungs are.

@HelenaDove You only need to hit the space bar once between words.
Totally misses the point of the thread...

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/austerity-pension-credit-mortality-pensioners_uk_56e84544e4b096ed3adc7484

In 2 minds about this, I am part of a mixed age couple I am 63 DH is 69, he still works but next year when he retires his state pension and private pension gives him an income of about £10 over the amount a couple can get in PC so If I lost my job and the rules remained the same we wouldn't get PC anyway and would have to live on his income alone until I get my own pension in 2021- actually even if DHs was under the limit I think I would be told to cash in my private pension early anyway - but what ever the scenario we wouldn't get it, which is fine by me we would still have an income that we could live on

However I have a friend who is the same age as me, her DH was able to claim PC at the age of 60 because that was the age a woman could get her state pension, she hasn't worked for 9 years, she can work if she wanted to but has a joint claim with her DH and doesn't even have to look for work now that's wrong IMO.

However I do see the problem if the working age partner is in poor health or has caring responsibilities

Pension credit is not a due though, it is there if it is needed. I don't see how it is any different to CB and wives losing it when their husband earn more than £60k. You could use the same analogy, why should they lose something they'd be entitled to if they were married to someone who earns less? Benefits are considered on the basis of marital status and most benefits are lost on the basis of the other person's situation. Why should pension credit be any different?

PIP mobility means that Carers Allowance cannot be claimed It has to be PIP daily living.

As a carer I do understand that and I think it is a flaw in the system. There are some people with significant mobility issues and no other health issues who can live reasonably independently and work with appropriate aids and those people don’t need carers but there are other people with mobility issues who absolutely need a lot of care to enable them to do basic things like have a wash, have a meal, get dressed etc and the system doesn’t acknowledge their need for a carer.
I’m not sure how carers allowance works with older people who get attendance allowance instead of PIP though. I know my grandmother gets attendance allowance and a carer would qualify for carers allowance for her but her primary carer works and earns over the threshold so doesn’t get carers allowance. Does anybody here know how carers allowance and attendance allowance works? I will google shortly.

I’m sure I’m missing info about people who reach 65 whilst already claiming PIP but for those who are over state pension age they claim attendance allowance instead of PIP and the rules about mobility and personal care needs are not eh same as PIP and it seems it might be possible for a carer to get carers allowance for an older person claiming attendance allowance who wouldn’t qualify under PIP rules.
I’m sure gov.uk is missing part of the info though.

I can't remember that exact issue but the radio 4 moneybox programme this week which covered this change had an expert on who did go into some of the more complex results of the change.

And if we think about this logically:
an older person who has a much young partner is less likely to need help from social care services and home help / care homes are very very expensive. So the amount paid out to a younger person in pension credit is far likely to put weight the cost savings to social care in the longer term.
People in receipt of pension credit won’t have savings which can be used to find their care so the cost would be borne by the state. But hey, let’s concentrate on them younger lazy non working partners getting a few quid in pension credit rather than looking at how much some of them may save the state in the long term .

Out weigh ^^

YY @totallycluelessoverhere.

the Age UK blog mentions informal family care arrangements too.

i wonder how many of the couples affected are also doing a bit of childcare for other family members who work.

Which may have to stop.

You can have up to 20k in savings and still claim pension credit. I now 20k isn't a huge amount in the grand scheme of things.

Well we havent. DH is one of those who got screwed over his private pension as ive explained upthread so we havent got any savings.

Same thing happened with DM and her private pension.

i will be very interested to see what will happen with the private/workplace pensions that people are paying into now.

DH was told he had to pay in or lose his job.

Totallyclueless

But that's true of many of this govts policies, they don't actually save money they're "ideological" it's not about saving money it's about not spending money on the "undeserving poor" (undeserving in their eyes)

It's also yet more strain on the nhs which will make it LOOK like it's not working. Back to Chomsky on privatisation...again

I agree graphista. It’s all about creating division and labelling anybody who claims benefits as feckless and a scrounger.
But this thread shows how many people believe the ideology and right wing media.

And I know it’s a different group but I implore everybody to watch ‘I daniel Blake’ and then see what damage the benefits sysyem in its current state is doing to ordinary people, some who have worked hard and paid taxes for decades.