Bus pass and prescriptions?

Maybe we should start a campaign? I mean, if my hairdresser’s neighbour’s cousin heard it it’s practically been passed, so if the government goes back on it it’s as much of a broken promise as their scrapping of the non-existent cap on care home fees.

I was looking forward to it. As long as I could choose whose goolies, of course.

You mean it's not true?
Thank goodness, I was beginning to wonder how I was going to balance on one leg whilst kicking someone in the g*****s with the other.

My post is no more OTT than many of the lies and rumours posted on here. There is another thread on which it’s being claimed that the government is going to scrap a cap on care home fees that doesn’t exist. That bus passes and free prescriptions are under threat and that pensioners’ savings are going to be taxed. All untrue. Those things are possible - anything is possible - but they are no closer to the truth than my suggestion.

Doodledog

BevSec

Wendyann23 you will only see change for the worse under Labour

I heard they were bringing in compulsory kick boxing classes for over 60s, as they are reducing the number of police on our streets and we will have to defend ourselves. People on pension credit will get 50% off the cost, but everyone else will have to pay £30 an hour. I think my hairdresser's neighbour's cousin saw it on Twitter.

You know what they say about sarcasm !!

Doodledog

I have already waited six years for my pension, and where I am there is no bus pass until SPA. I will be fizzing if it is withdrawn before I even get it.

But (and it is a big 'but') This Is Not Policy. It is speculation by journalists who have had nothing to write about while parliament wasn't in session

"But (and it is a big 'but') This Is Not Policy. It is speculation by journalists who have had nothing to write about while parliament wasn't in session

Just so.

What worries me is losing the free prescriptions. I have 9 different items monthly!

I have already waited six years for my pension, and where I am there is no bus pass until SPA. I will be fizzing if it is withdrawn before I even get it.

But (and it is a big 'but') This Is Not Policy. It is speculation by journalists who have had nothing to write about while parliament wasn't in session

Sunglow12,me too, I have only just got mine!

I have seen that very often of you havd things like the lower rate pension pension , bus pass etc they leave it that way but in future they could stop stuff like free prescriptions, bus passes but if won’t affect those already with it . Doubt they will come round collecting your bus pass if still in date . Hope so any way .

Allira

Well done, you could have a sneaky G&T at the same time.

Mind you, should we be buying gin at the price it is 😮

Yes, we should! Most of the price of gin is duty which goes to the Government so we are helping to fund essential services. 🍸 🙂

Well done, you could have a sneaky G&T at the same time.

Mind you, should we be buying gin at the price it is 😮

TBH I do feel vaguely guilty if I read or knit in the mornings, though obviously scrolling GN/MN doesn’t count!

It’s down in Holy Writ that sewing up doesn’t count as ‘knitting’, though, so later this morning I shall get down to the fiddly sewing up/faces of my ‘professional’ hand puppets. One chap in a suit, one doctor and a nurse ready so far. Only 4 more to go…

Tut tut, yet another order to Wool Warehouse? Why aren’t you ironing or dusting instead of knitting? And what are all these 99p payments to Amazon? Books on your Kindle? One a month would be plenty! Get off the sofa and pick up that duster, you lazy baggage!’
Have you been spying on my bank account, Witzend?

Where has the idea come from that we are going to be monitored? I must confess to being uneasy about the rights that Terese Coffey gave to HMRC to access bank accounts, but we were assured that this was just to prevent fraud, and most on here seemed to be broadly in favour at the time. that was the last government anyway, so nothing to do with the dastardly deeds that Starmer is being accused of vaguely considering.

Witzend

Iam64

Who is going to monitor your spending MaggsMcG?

Well, I’m glad nobody’s going to be monitoring mine!

‘Tut tut, yet another order to Wool Warehouse? Why aren’t you ironing or dusting instead of knitting? And what are all these 99p payments to Amazon? Books on your Kindle? One a month would be plenty! Get off the sofa and pick up that duster, you lazy baggage!’

😁

Why do I feel guilty if I knit or read in the mornings?

Yet I'm wasting time on here! There's a thunderstorm going on out there, it's dark, wet and miserable so that's my excuse.

Iam64

Who is going to monitor your spending MaggsMcG?

Well, I’m glad nobody’s going to be monitoring mine!

‘Tut tut, yet another order to Wool Warehouse? Why aren’t you ironing or dusting instead of knitting? And what are all these 99p payments to Amazon? Books on your Kindle? One a month would be plenty! Get off the sofa and pick up that duster, you lazy baggage!’

Iam64

Who is going to monitor your spending MaggsMcG?

I was puzzled by that comment.

Who is going to monitor your spending MaggsMcG?

It's the level of means testing I'm concerned about. Also I know I'm going to be affected by this but I also need to know if I'm going to be monitored on what I actually spend MY money on and what will happen if and when I eventually get to a position where I don't have any savings left! Even if I haven't wasted it on holidays or if I have spent it buying a car or on expensive holidays. It's MY money and I should be able to spend it making my life easier and enjoyable.

No problem

Sorry Wyllow. I had to answer the door half way through my post, and you have said all of this while I was away.

CariadAgain

I can't find the "edit" button anywhere to edit my post above - so I'll just add = I thought the £16,000 limit to savings is what applies now to anyone wanting to get pension credit type stuff (ie under £16k they can ---over it they can't)?

That's very different from taxing pensioners' savings. Pensioners pay the same tax as everyone else - less if they are working, as they don't currently pay NI.

Pension Credit is a means-tested benefit, and people with savings aren't entitled to it, any more than they would get other benefits, or help with things like care costs.

This is not a new thing, or peculiar to this government. There are numerous problems and unfairnesses with means-testing, IMO, but your post suggests that this is part of a package of 'attacks on pensioners' being considered by Starmer, which is simply not true. Whatever you think of the government this sort of speculation spreads fear and worry, and is unkind. For the record, the other things in your post are not verified either. We don't know what will happen in the budget - it is not until 30 October.

Better reference as this covers all the UK on council tax reduction

www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/benefits-entitlements/council-tax-reduction/#:~:text=If%20you%20don't%20get,tend%20to%20be%20less%20generous.

Cariad On the last page where I went through the falsehoods on the claims by Chocolatenoodle8 one by one,

I covered the £16.000 figure.

*It has nothing to do with taxing savings, it is to do with levels of being able to get a reduction on council tax

£16.000 is simply the point where if you have more than that, you can't apply for a reduction on your council tax

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/scotland/benefits/help-if-on-a-low-income/help-with-your-council-tax-council-tax-reduction-s/applying-for-council-tax-reduction-s/council-tax-reduction-income-when-the-pension-age-rules-are-used-s/#:~:text=If%20you%20have%20savings%20or,calculate%20income%20from%20your%20capital.

(I hope this might also help people in GN who have less than £16.000 in savings apply for the reduction)

Anywhere around here, the bus pass certainly keeps a lot of cars off the roads. I use my car a lot less since I’ve had it, and I know of others similar.