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National Service for Pensioners

(132 Posts)
absentgrana Sun 01-Jul-12 10:39:36

Lord Wei is reported in yesterday's The Daily Telegraph as saying that working part-time, volunteering for charities or sharing their business experience with young entrepreneurs would help older people avoid boredom in retirement. Apparently a pilot project to establish the idea of a "national retirement service" will target pensioners on cruises and other holidays. They, in turn, will be encouraged to target pensioners in the home localities.

He is quoted as saying: "Baby boomers are the youngest older generation we have ever seen. … They are not into morality,they're not into duty. If we don't facilitate this, there is going to be war. There are going to be arguments up and down the country because one generation thinks the other generation should be doing something."

Lord Wei was the great mind who advised David Cameron about the Big Society. He is 35.

jeni Sat 07-Jul-12 15:41:21

I'm definitely demented! I've just read my files for Monday and I'm ready to tear my hair out!

Grannylin Sat 07-Jul-12 16:00:06

Yes jeni! Beryl Cook is dead so I hope he doesn't live next door to her

jeni Sat 07-Jul-12 16:06:12

No he did and he's dead as well. She depicted them sunbathing in their garden. He was not amused!

GadaboutGran Sat 07-Jul-12 17:40:56

Great idea to invite Wei &/or Hurd to Gransnet & emailing him. Has anyone done so yet and got a reply? I think of all those older volunteers who have been chucked out of places such as Cathedral cafes & charities such as the WRVS stopped from running hospital cafes to be replaced by commercial organisations, plus all the loss of funding which has caused many charities to close. And aren't there already Volunteer Centres who do a great job facilitating volunteers? The problem with our expertise is that the values guiding what many of us did are now seen as uncommercial or outdated for a 'dog eats dog, 'computer says no' world.

Anagram Sat 07-Jul-12 18:00:52

Good point, GadaboutGran, about the WRVS in hospitals. That was a disgrace!

GadaboutGran Fri 13-Jul-12 18:13:26

There was another bash the selfish babyboomers in the Evening Standard yesterday (by Rachel Unwin/Urwin). If the arguments for withdrawing entitlements are good ones, they will stand & we can be convinced without the nasty victimisation of us & the fanning the flames of intergenerational conflict.