Rosemary

The pension scheme was designed for the next generation to pay for the previous one ergo I paid in for my parents generation my children pay in for my generation it could only work that way, no country could afford to pay the amounts required otherwise. Of course like many others you can pay in to a private pension also as I did, luckily mine worked out ok but there have been many losers and just as many foolish people who will say that they are far too knowledgable for anything disasterous to happen to them luckily the state pension is there for them to fall back on. I presume from your comments that you will not expect the next generation on from you to pay and therefore will forego you state pension when the time arrives.

graham

Rosemary

Just a little off topic but I see the the inflation figures for the UK have reached 5.2%, this should help people on state pension adding something like 5.50gbp to the weekly pension.

Graham

Arco-Iris

The WFA was introduced back in the 90s after years of pensioners being found dead of hypothermia. And a good thing too for people living on a basic pension.

I guess the Allowance may be targeted in the future in the same way that Family Allowance has been - by withdrawing it as a universal, non-means tested allowance. In the not-too-distant-future I can see the Coalition cutting off the allowance for folk whose income is above a certain level.

I, for one, am extremely glad that we were able to import our WFA on moving to Spain. These concrete houses are freezing in the winter and we noticed, as our bodies acclimatised to the area (and as we got into our 70s) we had to add more and more heating each winter. We have a wood burning stove in the sitting room, heated panels in each bedroom, a gas heater in the hall and an electric wall-mounted fan in the bathroom. In bed we have an electric blanket. I don't think this is so very different from a fully-centrally heated house/apartment in the UK.

I'm a child of the 40s, when it was not unusual to wake up with icicles inside the windows. I'm very glad that no UK citizen who is eligible for this benefit is denied the opportunity to receive it.

Chiclanagir

Well said.

megmet

I most definitely have got my facts straight, I have already quoted you as calling them in other threads "blaggers" and "trailer trash" and said "the worst thing about Spain is British expats".
It's very easy to see very single comment you have made, they are there for all to see in black and white linked in your profile.....if it's not too difficult for your tiny brain to cope with do take a look.

I'm just thankful you don't inhabit my world, you sound like a very lonely and embittered individual and one best avoided, Alhaurin el Grande is welcome to you!

megmet

Apologies Mitzy for answering him back, he's such a brainless prat though!

As for WFP, I hope all that are entitled to it continue receiving it for as long as they live, even in this 'hot country' old people here do still die of both cold and extreme heat!
Anything that us British tax payers can do to stop that happening must surely be a good thing.

jackytoo

I am a bit confused. I thought quite a few posters on here have been saying the same about the Brits in Spain. Bit of volte-face

licinius

I love the irony of this statement

licinius

I've already accepted the fact (along with most others my age) that even if there is still a state pension when I retire it won't be worth having so yeah they may as well go ahead & scrap it sooner rather than later.

From October next year it becomes compulsary for all workers & employers to pay into a pension. With tax relief this equates to 8% of an individuals salary. the state pension can then be phased out without fuss, we'll still pay the same amount of NI but that can be watsed on something else instead.

jo-ann

(SNIP)

And we did save for our retirement but the goal posts have moved faster than anyone could have expected, we both worked all of our lives and paid into the system and paid the maximum into private pensions that we could and now savings are disappearing rapidly, so please stop being such a snotty individual.

bil

If older people had the wit to create a political party for the over 60s or whatever, they could cause real problems for the government. After all, their attitude seems to be that once you cease to pay taxes, you are just a drain on the country, and the sooner you freeze to death or die on a hospital trolley in some cold corridor, the better.

jo-ann

Saw evidence of that with both parents, when they were in hospital, they couldn't kill them off quick enough, I expect the day will come when you will be given a pill to get rid of you and hence no more payments to be made.

bil

Like I say. Good job people are too stupid to do anything about it eh? Plus of course, we have created a system that basically sees you as worthless.

Lionda

They could call it the Common Sense Party

scampicat

There is the National Pensioners' Convention.

http://npcuk.org/

And many Pensioners continue to pay tax throughout their lives.

However, I agree that many people do take the attitude you mention.