The Labour Government

[hilts]

It’s going up by £400

Unfortunately after winter when it's not cold. It's a bad thing they are doing mate and now we are just seeing what we always see politicians and a small minority on here trying to save face.

At the cost of Beryl's life more than likely.

 

[mosssideblue]

bit like your comment right there ?

What comment would that be

 

[waspish]

Weird watching a conservative and labour supporters discus the winter payment taken of the pensioners, it was like roles reversed!

 

[mancityvstoke]

Unfortunately after winter when it's not cold. It's a bad thing they are doing mate and now we are just seeing what we always see politicians and a small minority on here trying to safe face.

At the cost of Beryl's life more than likely.

The £400 increase is to keep up with the cost of living not to cancel out the tight arsed policy of withdrawing winter fuel allowance.

Using that meagre increase to say pensioners on state pension only are doing alright is deluded.

 

[hampshireblue]

They raised the "new" state pension to just £4 over the pension credit limit for a reason. To stop people claiming pension credit. No chance that gets raised.

People on pension credit are better off than people who have only state pension.

That isn't right.

By "they" I assume you mean the last government?

People on PC will be better off as PC opens the door to other benefits. I'm not saying it's right but it's a fact.

 

[hampshireblue]

The £400 increase is to keep up with the cost of living not to cancel out the tight arsed policy of withdrawing winter fuel allowance.

Using that meagre increase to say pensioners on state pension only are doing alright is deluded.

Well the increase is actually the bit of the triple lock that keeps up with average pay. It will actually outstrip the present CPI. It still leaves the UK with one of the lowest pensions in Europe.

 

[metalblue]

The so-called justice system is a mess from top to bottom.
1. Many actions criminalised that should not be.
2. Thousands of offences on the books which are never charged.
3. A hopeless sentencing system with some offences over punished, others under punished.
4. Incarceration that does not deliver its stated aims such as rehabilitation, with no alternatives available. Far far too many people in prison who need not be there.
5. No post release regime to speak of.

Great interview with an ex offender and now campaigner who said he went through an open prison prior to release and because it’s half way between prison and release it has a much lower reoffend rate for people going through it.

 

[KS55]

Great interview with an ex offender and now campaigner who said he went through an open prison prior to release and because it’s half way between prison and release it has a much lower reoffend rate for people going through it.

Yep, but the half way house is not available to most. Where is this interview?

 

[hampshireblue]

If that were true, and there we no connection between you contributing NI and your pension benefit, then why do you have to contribute 10 years of NI to qualify for any state pension and 35 to qualify for it all? That that correlation exists creates a contract.

The fact the government pay for current pensions out of current taxes is “just in time” financial planning on their part.

No one has an individual state pension pot. You're right that there is a link between paying NI and entitlement to the state pension and it is this that we always refer to when we say we've paid our stamp. The fact is that NI is just chucked into general taxation and used by the govt to pay for "stuff".

But if the figures were separated out we would find in today's figures:

Average Salary: £33000
NI Paid per year: £2083

So if you are "fully Paid up" you will have worked 35 years so will have paid in 2083 x 35 = £72905. The max pension is £11502. So after just over 6 years of drawing the pension the drawee is in profit. In actual fact it is well before that as most people will have spent much of their work earning less than average and therefore paying less than the maximum NI.

If any party decides they want to scrap NI, there should be uproar as this is the only link there is to one's work input for 35 years and the pension output at the end of your working life.

 

[Kirkstall Blue]

If that were true, and there we no connection between you contributing NI and your pension benefit, then why do you have to contribute 10 years of NI to qualify for any state pension and 35 to qualify for it all? That that correlation exists creates a contract.

The fact the government pay for current pensions out of current taxes is “just in time” financial planning on their part.

Good question in my case 45years of paying a NI stamp and employers contribution to that stamp
The NI fund is still separate from Tax but in stead of government taking a surplus from the fund since 1978 they use more of it on means tested benefits.
The government would have us believe they pay state pension out of income tax that’s not so. Whereas 70% from the fund went on state benefits including our pensions it’s probably a lot less now as government uses more of the fund the pot gets smaller and smaller