On Monday, older people got another big increase in their pension payments, but they didn’t celebrate much because there’s a lot of confusion and disagreement about the whole state pension system.
The triple lock rule has boosted pension payments by 8.5 percent this year, on top of last year’s 10.1 percent raise, beating inflation. But it’s always at risk, and pensioners worry it might end soon. Also, not every part of the state pension follows the triple lock rule.
The extra state pension and the means-tested top-up pension credit aren’t included in the triple lock, which makes many people feel like they’re not getting enough. Another problem is that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s decision to freeze the tax threshold might make over a million pensioners start paying taxes, and many don’t know this yet.
On top of that, there’s the Waspi scandal, where women have been unfairly affected by pension changes, as well as cases where the Department for Work and Pensions has underpaid pensions to women. Plus, the retirement age keeps going up, putting more pressure on the state pension system.
Compared to other developed countries, the UK state pension is the lowest, with retirees in some places getting three times more. How did our pensions end up in such a bad situation?.
The state pension is meant to be the main source of income when we retire, but it’s always been uncertain. People think they deserve it because they’ve paid National Insurance for years, but it’s not seen as a right by the government; they call it a benefit.
This upsets many older folks who never claimed benefits while working. However, complaining won’t help because the money for the state pension doesn’t sit in a savings pot; it comes from today’s taxpayers.
It’s worrying because it means the government has a lot of control over the state pension. As the population ages and fewer people are working for each retiree, the government keeps increasing the retirement age.
Paying National Insurance was supposed to be a deal between workers and the government, but it was broken from the start. The state pension system is incredibly complicated, with different types of pensions and extra benefits, making it hard to understand what you’ll get and if it’s fair.
Many feel they’re getting a raw deal, especially since the basic state pension is only £8,114, while the newer one is up to £11,502. Even though Pension Credit is meant to help the poorest, many don’t even know about it.
Now, with the personal allowance frozen, more pensioners will have to pay income tax, and many might not realize it until they get a bill, possibly with fines.
Politicians used to think people would have enough private pensions, but scandals and tax changes have left many without enough. With an election coming up, we need to talk about the state pension, but politicians seem to avoid the topic. We can’t keep going like this, but we also can’t do without the state pension.
