Vince Cable Pensioners should go back to work

It’s not 1st April is it? I worked from the age of 17 to 60, with 9 years off to raise three children. During those nine years I also did Child Minding for a pittance and helped run Toddler Groups and Playgroups, for free. During my working years I paid enough through taxes etc., to fund my retirement. Who are these ridiculous people who just say ridiculous stuff to get a reaction?

mumofthree and all the younger people who are working and paying tax because their retired parents provide child care.

Then there is the tax that older people pay from their income, not just income tax, but VAT, excise duty, stamp duty, car licences etc etc

I am a member of the LibDems and a fellow economist and used to be a great supporter of Vince Cable but ever since his time as leader I have become more and more disillusioned with him. If retired people keep working they need to be fit in mind as well as body, and perhaps Vince Cable's intellectual fitness is fading, no matter how physically fit he remains.

I'm not surprised you took a dislike to him Mumofthree. He was pretty objectionable on The Apprentice, unpopular with the other contestants, and I'm sure Alan Sugar only kept him in as he makes for fiery TV.

Go back to work? How dare he? He has to be joking, surely? I haven't got time to work, and wonder how I ever managed it. Yes, I'm fit, but don't pick on me for it!

M0nica, you are so right. This is part of the argument Nina put to him but he is blinkered to this fact. All the elderly unpaid child carers who love having their grandchildren are saving the economy thousands of pounds not to mention those people who are also caring for their ill or disabled partners at home. This young man has no idea what he is talking about, he said he plans to 'work until he drops'...well, good for him...

Good points & an interesting post MOnica.

Maybe I’m lazy? I’m 67y, retired and (fortunately) in good health so yes, I could work. But do I want to? Nope.

None of us knows how many (or few) years are left to us. Woyld I want to spend mine working? Definitely not. Yes, I’d have more disposable income (we live solely on our pensions now with no savings) but to be honest I’d rather have ‘time off’ and cut my cloth accordingly.

^The monetary value of the direct economic contribution of employment, informal caring, including childcare, and volunteering by people aged 50 or over in the United
Kingdom in 2016/17 amounted to £796 bn (approx. 45 per cent of Gross Value Added), of which people aged 65 or over contributed with £160 bn. Employment contribution amounted to £570 bn (£ 54 bn from 65+); informal caring
activities added another £175 bn (£ 95 bn), informal childcare was worth £7.7 bn (only estimated for those aged 65 or over) and volunteering represented another £43.4 bn (£ 2.7 bn).^
www.ageuk.org.uk/globalassets/age-uk/documents/reports-and-publications/reports-and-briefings/active-communities/the_economic_contribution_of_older_-people_-update_-to_-2017.pdf

That was the situation in 2017 when this report was published. Quite frankly Vince Cable is an ignorant old fool. Him an economist and not taking into account all the informal unpaid work we do with childcare and voluntary work, not to mention how much of the economy depends on our montary expenditure!