Looks like England is the last place you want to be if you are on benefits or getting old.

I suspect Canada is worse for those on minimal income to be honest, and at least they both have a safety net unlike some other places.

What does this have to do with Canada anyway?

Bizarre.

There's a whiff of troll about this thread.

i was under the impression that the UK's generous benefits is in part what has hurt the economy.

That being said, 98 quid a week that my old man is trying to get by on is pretty crap. He's had to keep a part time job as a school caretaker to get by. Sad when you think that he worked his balls off his whole life and never took nowt from the government.

I think the old age benefits are more generous here but only if you have been here a good chunk of your working life

Old people should be shot at birth.

Prince Philip has been on benefits most of his life, and he's 91.

And fringe benefits, he got to sleep with the boss.

That's a benefit? Can you imagine?

My mother in law gets (or did) the top up to her 'normal' pension. A bit like Pension Credit (ex income support in the UK).

Because she qualified for the top up, she qualified for the seniors prescription program and her meds were only $9 each.

She cashed in an RRSP last year to pay off loans accumulated during her late husband's long illness and death.

That was paid after deduction of tax. She then had an increased tax liability because Revenue Canada included the cashed in RRSP as her income last year.

Because her assessed income for last year increased, she lost the income top up this year.

Because she lost the income top up she has lost coverage under the seniors program and has to pay the full cost of meds.

Even though there's been a considerable drop in her income.

like anywhere the rules tend to be a one size fits all. It should come as no surprise though that cashing out a rrsp creates a tax liability, after all it really was only a tax deferral investment. I assume you are referring to GIS (general income supplement) which is intended specifically for those that dont have the full CPP or OAS benefits.

Assuming one made max contributions to CPP and max OAS, an average pension here would be around 1500 bucks a month or so, quite a bit more than 400 quid a month in the UK.

Problem here though, is the amount of time in you have to have to max out. It's something like 40 years.

Sure. But having your income reduced as well as the additional tax is a double whammy and then having to pay full cost for meds is a triple whammy.

Remember, too, that if you only get that £400 or so in the UK you can get your rent money on top and pension credit.

A single pensioner is guaranteed almost £140 a week and if they have rent to pay, they'll get that too. A typical minimum income would then be around £1100 a month. And you can have several thousand ££ in the bank and not pay for prescriptions.

The safety net is considerably stronger in the UK.

Perscription costs vary form province to province. but yep.....i,m quite happy to have my federal pension thanks very muchly.

The example of your MIL is really not a case of being penalised for having funds. RRSP are and always have been subject to income taxes and are added to total incomes for the year. One would hardly be punished for having savings as you suggest. CPP is based on contributions throughout one's working life and OAS is based on residency in Canada. GIS is designed to bridge the gap. Seems more equitable to me.

The uk system seems unfair to me. If you own your own home you get 98 quid a week but if you don't you get more. My old man has a little bungalow but no other pensions or funds....for all his efforts and not sponging off the system he gets 98 squid a week.

Well you should get him to apply for Pension Credit then as no single pensioner should be below £137.35 regardless of where they live.

Council Tax benefit too.

But cash in an RRSP or sell a house and incur capital gains tax just for that year and it's going to cost you your GIS and prescription coverage (depending on your province) the following year.

Bristol, you're wasting your breath. Some people want to believe that the UK deliberately keeps its pensioners barely a day's gruel away from the poorhouse, while throwing bucketfuls of cash around at them bloody immigrants.

How anyone can bemoan the poverty of their parents who own a home outright is beyond me.