I voted for Starmer to make the hard decisions so I’m glad he did this as unpopular as it is.
It was clearly the economically responsible decision and even a lot of Tory MPs secretly realise that which is why they’ve supported it in the past.
But nobody wanted to take the political hit.
Our fortunes as a country have been continuously diminished because we became a gerontocracy
POTUS_Kamala_Harris on
Shows what a large majority means.Â
You can have significant internal disent and still manage to get things passed.Â
Reasonable_Blood6959 on
I mean the government was always going to win. What’s will be interesting is how many Labour MPs voted against their government/abstained and what happens as a result
jazzyb88 on
Good result, but no hope of scrapping the triple lock given the way this went.
Elonmuskishuman on
1 in 4 pensioners live in properties worth over £1million
0kDetective on
They didn’t u-turn after heavy press criticism? Well I’ll be damned
Codydoc4 on
Good, should never have been implemented in the way it was, like everything some people will lose out but that’s life.
Longjumping-Pay-2186 on
Starmer himself warned about the damage this exact action would do. And it’s on of his first policies. He couldn’t have trimmed foreign aid to cover this?
Hairy-gloryhole on
Well, us youngsters get told to eat less avocado toast and cut that netflix subscription, so maybe, less attending golf clubs and one less holiday in Spain and they’ll be fine.
Wasn’t a fan of starmer but now I slowly become one. Absolute Chad, it wasn’t easy decision, yet the right one and he made it.
bulldog_blues on
Good news overall, here’s hoping support is in place to avoid a subset of poorer pensioners falling through the cracks.
InsaneGorilla0 on
You can argue about what income pensioners should start getting it, or having some sort of tiered system, but getting rid of the blanket payment is the right call.
Threatening-Silence- on
Good.
Next up, index state pension payouts by how much NICs you’ve contributed instead of just years served.
The median pensioner receives almost 2x in state pension what they paid in NICs. No wonder we’re broke.
I do wish people commenting on this would fuck off about the value of pensioner’s houses. They probably bought those houses 25+ years ago when prices were much lower. They will have paid a mortgage and maybe had two jobs to pay for it. Poverty and struggling is not a new concept and I haven’t mentioned 15% interest rates either. Nor are they responsible for the state of the housing market, and many have become the Bank of Mum and Dad which some of you have probably withdrawn from. Houses are fixed assets, they are not cash, and unless things change there are no incentives in place to downsize or withdraw equity on a contractually regulated basis. So, stick to income considerations which are valid.
ganjapeace on
Good. Fed up of taxes on PAYE being astronomical. Pensioners should have eaten less avocado toast and saved more into a private pension
Special-Ad-9415 on
This policy is tory levels of ghoulish. I think that most agree there is a huge proportion of pensioners who have no need for the fuel allowance, but the poorest who they are cutting it for will likely have to choose between food and heating.
Odd-Wafer-4250 on
Let me see. He resolved things with the much needed NHS Drs. to make the NHS worthwhile for them and to make them feel valued. To pay for that he means-tested boomer winter fuel allowance. So the boomers have to sacrifice blanket financial help on their fuel payments. Those same boomers who, when they hear of children going hungry, are of the opinion that the parents need to sacrifice anything enjoyable in their life.
Good.
sortofhappyish on
Whilst simultaneously voting themselves a fucking MASSIVE payrise.
FullTimeHarlot on
My parents have £500,000 sitting in various savings accounts and receive dividends, plus both their pensions, yet they’re still eligible for fuel subsidy. If you’re going to make cuts this one makes sense.
FullTimeHarlot on
My parents have £500,000 sitting in various savings accounts and receive dividends, plus both their pensions, yet they’re still eligible for fuel subsidy. If you’re going to make cuts this one makes sense.
sortofhappyish on
Massive tax cuts for billionaires, but pensioners are the true monsters here. Some of them have photo albums they could burn for warmth.
And that Yorkshire terrier yapping in the corner could feed them for a week!
_cookie_crumbles on
65+ is the age group where over 60% voted for Brexit. Highest % of any age group. No sympathy for old rich bastards that ruined the country.
On_The_Blindside on
Good, this is the right decision. The fact so many pensioners are up in arms about it is wild, they’re like entitled toddlers, they’ve had their own way for so long they don’t know how to accept it not being about them anymore.
nacnud_uk on
Tell me how your vote for the people, is working out…
messedup73 on
I think this was a good decision the poorest pensioners will still get the allowance in theory they could have scrapped the whole lot.I understand pensioners need to keep warm so does plenty of disabled people and people who work from home.My husband and I have low income and I can’t work due to a medical condition apparently I am a health and safety risk we just put extra on my pre payment meter in the summer so we have a good amount saved for winter.At least the new government is actively seen trying to do something and it’s still helping the poorer elderly.
GayWolfey on
The reaction of the media and pensioners over this means no government will ever go near the triple lock. And that’s they real money saver there if you dared
Civil_opinion24 on
I’ve had to listen to my mum whinge about this today.
She would never have been eligible anyway
Mr_XcX on
Labour okay with elderly people dying and cutting winter fuel allowance while giving pay rises to striking unions. They are so awful. I will never ever support this government. Hope they make cuts / job losses to all those who voted for them and the economy crashes.
Erect_Llama on
Honestly glad about this, it’s a decision that had to be made to try and fix this fucked economy. Glad to see that Starmer is making actual change like he promised.
Maleficent_Fish2109 on
Looks like there will be a few individuals who will have to drop that morning coffee, cancel Netflix or not book that holiday to Spain….
Henghast on
Pensioners are getting a bigger pay rise than i’ve had in 2 years, every year just on the back of the triple lock. Two years is being kind, and lazy honestly.
A means testing process for these things should be basic, like we have for other aspects of life. Whether it’s bankruptcy, benefits or tax exemptions.
Verbal_v2 on
Let’s hope this encourages more people to take up the Pension Credits available to them and wipe out any benefit of the savings.
Macgargan1976 on
Establishment B team doing the business. Anyone voting for them who thought they would act other wise were kidding themselves.
JonnyBe123 on
Good. Too much in this country is targeted at people that don’t contribute. Hard decisions need to be made and savings need to happen.
It’s about time those savings aren’t purely directed at the ones who are working and contributing.
In a perfect world we’d have money for everything but we don’t. We can’t keep propping up broken systems while we all get poorer.
So many of these systems were built on a social welfare system that worked when it was 1 claiming them for every 5 workers but it’s broken now and it’s not 1 claiming for 4 workers. Soon it will be 1 to 3. What then?
kawasutra on
In case anyone wants to read the proposal… For me, the important bit is that they will means test the WFP.
“The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, has announced that, from winter 2024/2025, households in England and Wales will no longer be entitled to the Winter Fuel Payment unless they receive Pension Credit or certain other means-tested benefits.”
34 Comments
I voted for Starmer to make the hard decisions so I’m glad he did this as unpopular as it is.
It was clearly the economically responsible decision and even a lot of Tory MPs secretly realise that which is why they’ve supported it in the past.
But nobody wanted to take the political hit.
Our fortunes as a country have been continuously diminished because we became a gerontocracy
Shows what a large majority means.Â
You can have significant internal disent and still manage to get things passed.Â
I mean the government was always going to win. What’s will be interesting is how many Labour MPs voted against their government/abstained and what happens as a result
Good result, but no hope of scrapping the triple lock given the way this went.
1 in 4 pensioners live in properties worth over £1million
They didn’t u-turn after heavy press criticism? Well I’ll be damned
Good, should never have been implemented in the way it was, like everything some people will lose out but that’s life.
Starmer himself warned about the damage this exact action would do. And it’s on of his first policies. He couldn’t have trimmed foreign aid to cover this?
Well, us youngsters get told to eat less avocado toast and cut that netflix subscription, so maybe, less attending golf clubs and one less holiday in Spain and they’ll be fine.
Wasn’t a fan of starmer but now I slowly become one. Absolute Chad, it wasn’t easy decision, yet the right one and he made it.
Good news overall, here’s hoping support is in place to avoid a subset of poorer pensioners falling through the cracks.
You can argue about what income pensioners should start getting it, or having some sort of tiered system, but getting rid of the blanket payment is the right call.
Good.
Next up, index state pension payouts by how much NICs you’ve contributed instead of just years served.
The median pensioner receives almost 2x in state pension what they paid in NICs. No wonder we’re broke.
https://www.pensionspolicyinstitute.org.uk/media/1crf4ox5/20230110-nics-and-statepen-post-proof.pdf
I do wish people commenting on this would fuck off about the value of pensioner’s houses. They probably bought those houses 25+ years ago when prices were much lower. They will have paid a mortgage and maybe had two jobs to pay for it. Poverty and struggling is not a new concept and I haven’t mentioned 15% interest rates either. Nor are they responsible for the state of the housing market, and many have become the Bank of Mum and Dad which some of you have probably withdrawn from. Houses are fixed assets, they are not cash, and unless things change there are no incentives in place to downsize or withdraw equity on a contractually regulated basis. So, stick to income considerations which are valid.
Good. Fed up of taxes on PAYE being astronomical. Pensioners should have eaten less avocado toast and saved more into a private pension
This policy is tory levels of ghoulish. I think that most agree there is a huge proportion of pensioners who have no need for the fuel allowance, but the poorest who they are cutting it for will likely have to choose between food and heating.
Let me see. He resolved things with the much needed NHS Drs. to make the NHS worthwhile for them and to make them feel valued. To pay for that he means-tested boomer winter fuel allowance. So the boomers have to sacrifice blanket financial help on their fuel payments. Those same boomers who, when they hear of children going hungry, are of the opinion that the parents need to sacrifice anything enjoyable in their life.
Good.
Whilst simultaneously voting themselves a fucking MASSIVE payrise.
My parents have £500,000 sitting in various savings accounts and receive dividends, plus both their pensions, yet they’re still eligible for fuel subsidy. If you’re going to make cuts this one makes sense.
My parents have £500,000 sitting in various savings accounts and receive dividends, plus both their pensions, yet they’re still eligible for fuel subsidy. If you’re going to make cuts this one makes sense.
Massive tax cuts for billionaires, but pensioners are the true monsters here. Some of them have photo albums they could burn for warmth.
And that Yorkshire terrier yapping in the corner could feed them for a week!
65+ is the age group where over 60% voted for Brexit. Highest % of any age group. No sympathy for old rich bastards that ruined the country.
Good, this is the right decision. The fact so many pensioners are up in arms about it is wild, they’re like entitled toddlers, they’ve had their own way for so long they don’t know how to accept it not being about them anymore.
Tell me how your vote for the people, is working out…
I think this was a good decision the poorest pensioners will still get the allowance in theory they could have scrapped the whole lot.I understand pensioners need to keep warm so does plenty of disabled people and people who work from home.My husband and I have low income and I can’t work due to a medical condition apparently I am a health and safety risk we just put extra on my pre payment meter in the summer so we have a good amount saved for winter.At least the new government is actively seen trying to do something and it’s still helping the poorer elderly.
The reaction of the media and pensioners over this means no government will ever go near the triple lock. And that’s they real money saver there if you dared
I’ve had to listen to my mum whinge about this today.
She would never have been eligible anyway
Labour okay with elderly people dying and cutting winter fuel allowance while giving pay rises to striking unions. They are so awful. I will never ever support this government. Hope they make cuts / job losses to all those who voted for them and the economy crashes.
Honestly glad about this, it’s a decision that had to be made to try and fix this fucked economy. Glad to see that Starmer is making actual change like he promised.
Looks like there will be a few individuals who will have to drop that morning coffee, cancel Netflix or not book that holiday to Spain….
Pensioners are getting a bigger pay rise than i’ve had in 2 years, every year just on the back of the triple lock. Two years is being kind, and lazy honestly.
A means testing process for these things should be basic, like we have for other aspects of life. Whether it’s bankruptcy, benefits or tax exemptions.
Let’s hope this encourages more people to take up the Pension Credits available to them and wipe out any benefit of the savings.
Establishment B team doing the business. Anyone voting for them who thought they would act other wise were kidding themselves.
Good. Too much in this country is targeted at people that don’t contribute. Hard decisions need to be made and savings need to happen.
It’s about time those savings aren’t purely directed at the ones who are working and contributing.
In a perfect world we’d have money for everything but we don’t. We can’t keep propping up broken systems while we all get poorer.
So many of these systems were built on a social welfare system that worked when it was 1 claiming them for every 5 workers but it’s broken now and it’s not 1 claiming for 4 workers. Soon it will be 1 to 3. What then?
In case anyone wants to read the proposal… For me, the important bit is that they will means test the WFP.
“The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, has announced that, from winter 2024/2025, households in England and Wales will no longer be entitled to the Winter Fuel Payment unless they receive Pension Credit or certain other means-tested benefits.”
https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-10094/