I was alarmed to see this headline flash on my screen.
We all know that these days that by the time a hook headline like this finds its way to our screens, there have been countless government £££s paid management consultants already discussing whatever idea over their morning kale smoothies for months.
I’m relying on my state pension kicking in at 67 whatever my financial situation. I have worked for that money all my life. If they want to steal it then they will need to give me back all my contributions. Absolutely disgraceful that anyone should even put this idea out there. This is our money and the government are thinking of raiding it like thieves.
I predict some on here will think it’s acceptable. Because anything is acceptable if you warm people up to it. Be warned this is how our dudmocracy works.
I do not see it coming. The outrage would be overwhelming.
If you are above average wealth then most likely your earnings were above average - for at least most of your working life. And if so, then your NI contributions were above average. Simply put, you’d have put more into the system than most others. To then suggest that you get less - because you’re now better off, because you’ve put more in - would be beyond outrageous.
Nine years? That could be two changes of government (according to the petition thread we’re going to get rid of Labour soon - so it might be three changes). Who, then, is “they”?
they is /are the governments - whoever is voted in will have the same financial problems to deal with. Ageing population living longer, economic inactivity due to retirement, falling birthrate, increased economic pressures due to creaking infrastructure, stagnant economic markets, international stalemate. It’s only going to get worse in the next 9 years.
Hence tax the high net worth wealthy. They have multiple mechanisms to avoid taxes today. Strip them of these avoidance dodges and get them coughing up the same as a high PAYE earner.
But otherwise you have correctly identified the scale of the challenge facing the current government - with issues such as creaking (its worse than creaking) infrastructure and stagnant economy directly down to the previous government. This is going to take time and taxation to address. Whoever is the “they” in power.
it’s not just down to the tories, but goes back decades and includes New Labour and Thatcher. Every government passes the residual mess to the next. The biggest deal is the continued procrastination ref nuclear power plants. But if our population continues to grow at the rate it has we have creaking power infrastructure and sewerage / water supplies. We already have poo in the sea. Transportation, schools, healthcare, emergency services are nowhere near the requirement for the number of new builds they are putting in place. They are building wind farms etc instead of addressing the basics.
We are fools to have ever trusted our government with something as critical as retirement pay. Aside from the military, first responders, and interstate road systems, expecting the government to do something responsibly and conscientiously is a fool’s game.
Several years ago, U.S. Republicans tried to pass legislation that would reduce the amount of Social Security (our retirement system) contributions so we could invest it privately, but as usual the Democrats shot it down, refusing to take their greedy little hands off of it. Now we are stuck with increasing retirement age, terrible returns (increases to offset inflation) and the government using that money at their whim.
About the best we can do is preach to our kids and grandkids to treat government retirement like it is a fairy tale and to save a lot more privately - now. Preach that it is never the job of the government to take care of you - and even if you hold that misconception - it won’t.
Quite a lot to unpick. Yes, there has been decades of problems. But remember it was under New Labour that there was a school building / re-building programme and a similar programme for hospitals.
But I’d agree about the issues stemming from new builds. I used to live in west London - in a new build and with many new builds nearby. The contributions from developers for the local infrastructure was significantly less than needed. On top of that, the additional council tax contributions from all these new properties did not seem to trickle down into improved services.
As for population aging - that’s why immigration is needed. That’s why there is population growth.
And poo in the sea. That is unregulated capitalism in full flight.
Even if they are toying with such an outrageous idea, the preservation of the status quo principle would hopefully prevent it from being implemented.
The government cannot move the goalposts when it’s payday. Any such cruelties would have had to be announced before people sign up. Otherwise the requirements for fraudulent misrepresentation would be met. I doubt that any changes would affect you and the boomers.
