Osborne's Budget - looks like pensioners will lose out the most

I signed it yesterday too!

Just scanned the morning papers online and found this, referring to the online petition

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2119658/Enough-Pensioners-say-granny-tax-Petition-force-Commons-debate-Osbornes-Budget-raid.html

I think you mean "discriminatory" fieldwake in that is has an unfair impact on women. Like having height requirements for police was.
Write to Tory MPs, tell them you will change the habits of a lifetime and vote for someone else next time.

In the first place we only get the £5 increase because the price index was high last Sept. [ September is chosen because historically it has the lowest price index and inflation] Next sept. may be nowhere as high. This is not an amount that the government has been kind enough to give us. It is our right because we paid our Nationla Insurance. Also we are taxed on it. So someone with another pension will pay more tax just because of the increase.

Done it - now up to 930.

epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/31778

More signatures needed - it's up to 915 now - anyone else going to sign?

Thanks mumster I will sign that right now.

fieldwake - "sexist" is men having to wait longer than women to get their pensions, especially bearing in mind that they tend to die sooner!

There is something you can do fieldwake. I have just signed an E petition to replace the age-related tax allowances. I accessed it via the Telegraph website.

Yes soft targets, because we are 'invisible' as mostly we are no trouble they think they can get away with 'daylight robbery' under the guise of simplifying for us! Yes Gordon and his 10p tax treats us as if we are all stupid. As there are more women affected, as with the child allowance changes, this is sexist.

So for us who lived thro' the war and all it's austerities but still saved and went without, this is our reward towards the end of our lives a gradual eroding of our income. As we cannot supplement our income we are stuck. So it's not a lot but I find I have to constantly keep track and go careful with the prospect of added expense with each advancing year, aging bodies need more care. We have been insulted.

Are they going to get away with it? What can we do?

Gillian the 5.2 % increase is laughable not generous. If inflation had been running at 2% in September then that's what the increase would have been. Dave C. is fooling no-one by saying it's the most generous pension increase ever. What he isn't saying is that it's at that rate only because inflation was running so high at the crucial time. Ergo - increase eroded by inflation. I maintain that there are pensioners whose financial survival is marginal - leading to loss of independence, self-esteem and confidence. However I think Carol's well-informed opinions are completely credible.

I took retirement 18 months ao at nearly 62, earlier than planned, when 12 middle managers were needed to throw themselves on their swords. As soon as redundancy came into the equation I accepted it, reasoning that if I used every penny to get rid of my mortgage, I would be just able to manage. I have done voluntary work since, but not looking for work now - I manage by living as frugally as I can.

If I had stood my ground and stayed on, I would still have some decent savings. Ridding myself of every debt was a challenge, but I have done it.

Hattiehelga I think faith is the right word: a belief system (same as religion) with dogmas - based on no scientific evidence.

Who says our generation is exempt from hardship? Ask Phoenix who has just lost her job; and I was made redundant 13 years ago, just 18 months before I was due to retire. I got a retraining deal as part of the redundancy package, but try getting full time work at 60.

jaskie well said. We older people often moan about being treated as if we are in our dotage when we are, generally, fit and healthy, certainly fitter and healthier than previous generations. Why not work longer - it keeps body and brain ticking over better? The whole country is in a mess - my daughter (an SEN teacher) could face redundancy at any time, her husband (who works in Local Government) has twice been faced with redundancy. Why should the older generation be exempt from the hardship. I should think that Labour heaved a sigh of relief when they lost the election because they didn't have a clue what to do next.

Just catching up after a lovely afternoon out in the sunshine. No, neither of the people I have mentioned are eligible for DLA, Attendance Allowance, Mobility or anything else - we have gone down every avenue we can think of. These are the sort of pensioners who will continue to find life a struggle because they just don't have enough money and when they have met crises, a little loan has meant they have a debt, too.

I am trying so very hard to keep faith with the Tories but they are making it harder and harder. They have already lost the vote of public sector workers, NHS workers, families losing child benefit and almost certainly many pensioners. In 2016, if we are still around !, we will be the second class pensioners when newcomers receive the £140 weekly. That is so unfair.
After so many years of conscientiously voting every time I fear I will be not be venturing out again.

When pensions were started in 1905, most folk died before they ever received a penny.... or they got their very small pension and then died after just a few years taking it easy!! Now my father in law has been retired nearly longer than he worked!! The country has not really grown richer to afford this kind of payment to millions of folk.
What can we do?? WORK LONGER, PAY MORE AS WE WORK, COMBINE BOTH IDEAS to increase our pension pot, or agree to have ourselves put to sleep when we are say 80!! My guess is that the last idea is a bit of a non starter.....so the GOVT is really making us think about the other two plans..... more savings, a private extra pension,buy to let, antiques!?
The other idea is to say make huge savings in other areas egstop being on the top table at world affairs...so....shut down masses of the armed forces. Stop overseas aid. Cut back long term welfare for fit healthy people,and make well established folk pay private medical insurance or use their savings for some health care.How about a real bonfire of red tape and jobsworths and real sell offs and a great efficiency drives.LABOUR willnot put these allowaces back..... in fact they will be pleased because Dave has made the hard decisions.... they never had the courage to do!

"You can get Attendance Allowance even if no one is actually giving you the care you need - even if you live alone."

From the Direct Gov website.

I realise that Damian McBride and the Labour politicians mentioned here may not be everybody's Vodka Jelly, but this is a fascinating insight into how budgets get put together.
dpmcbride.tumblr.com/post/19717319716/at-half-time-in-last-nights-arsenal-game-i-was

KittyNannie I take my hat off to you! You are doing a wonderful job with your grandchildren.

We had a similar thing some years back when one of our GS came to live with us aged 15. He left school and went to college and could not get the education allowance of £30 a week which existed then (now stopped) because our income was over the limit. His (separated) parents had very low incomes but because he was living with us they only considered ours. We supported him entirely until he started working some years later.

Grandparents have no legal rights but are expected to pay up for grandchildren nevertheless.

The phrase is 'help with 'bodily functions' these mean things like toile ting, feeding, dressing, mobilising indoors etc
They do not include things like shopping transport housework ironing gardening
Heating and for the over 65s cooking!
Supervision has to be continuous thought the day and prolonged or repeated at night.
Yes it's difficult to get. This is what I spend my time doing. Sitting on the appeals for AA/DLA and also ESA.

Sorry, Gillian, I meant to add that the criteria for Attendance Allowance are very tough and likely to get tougher:

You may get Attendance Allowance (AA) if the following apply:
you have a physical disability (including sensory disability, such as blindness), a mental disability (including learning difficulties), or both
your disability is severe enough for you to need help caring for yourself or someone to supervise you, for your own or someone else’s safety
you are aged 65 or over when you claim

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTaxAndBenefits/BenefitsTaxCreditsAndOtherSupport/Disabledpeople/DG_10018710

I don't think the people described by Carol and em would be considered eligible on these criteria.

Yes Gillian they are claiming all they can in monetary and benefit terms - people who sink into debt don't get helped out by benefits agencies once they have taken out crisis loans that are being paid back out of reduced benefits, and anyone with a large house is advised to shut off rooms and live in as few as possible. I have worked with welfare benefits for all of my career and then volunteered with a credit union, and the sorry stories of people sinking deeper into debt and lack of support is growing. A woman with a large house and little money doesn't necessarily benefit from being told she can have free insulation when she hasn't got heating to keep the warmth in her house, and relies on oil heaters which are more expensive, but all she can afford as they were given to her. We have looked for a gas fitter/plumber to help but when they see the sorry state of her boiler, they say she needs a new one - she hasn't got the money.

True enough, gillian. These benefits are available but they are awarded only on the basis of need. The new car is paid for by the mobility element of DLA. They are not compelled to use it to buy a car. Many people are glad to use it for taxi fares or possibly to run a mobility scooter. Some may envy these benefits, but do we envy the disabilities that make them necessary?