RPI to CPI Early Day Motion 1032

xylophone

Can't seem to get my water cheaper......

Interested_Taxpayer

To see and note the latest newsletter from the Civil Service Pensioner's Alliance. For ease of reference the two grounds on which leave to appeal has been granted are as follows:-

• Was CPI an index which the Secretary of State was entitled to adopt?
• Had the Secretary of State erred in law in having regard to economic considerations, when considering the switch to the CPI index?

Hopefully we will hear next week whether the first group of litigants (and the others) will go ahead with the appeal. It looks likely though.

CSPA NEWSLETTER

Number 81 09 December 2011

Dear Colleague

PUBLIC SECTOR PENSION INCREASE 2012

Please see these glad tidings from Cabinet Office. Despite much press speculation, the Government will not, in fact, seek to break the statutory link between the additional state pension and public sector pensions.

The Minister for Pensions made an announcement on the uprating of social security pensions and benefits for 2012-13 in the House of Commons on 6 December. He stated that the additional state pension will rise by 5.2%. As required by section 59 of the Social Security Pensions Act 1975, HM Treasury will make an Order in due course applying the same percentage increase to public service pensions.
6 December 2011 – Biggest ever cash increase to the basic State Pension as it rises to £107.45 in 2012/13
Pensioners will benefit from the biggest cash increase to their basic State Pension from next April as it goes up by September’s Consumer Prices Index of 5.2% - an increase of £5.30 a week.
This is the biggest cash increase since the State Pension was first introduced.
Minister for Pensions Steve Webb said:
"Our ‘triple lock’ commitment to give pensioners the best of prices, earnings or 2.5% on their basic State Pension gives them the reassurance that their pension will increase by a fair amount every year.
"It also means that by next April the basic State Pension will be worth 17% of average earnings, the highest it has been in any year since 1997."
The poorest pensioners will also see the benefit of the triple lock as the Pension Credit Standard Minimum Guarantee rises by £5.35 a week. The state additional pension (SERPs) will also increase this year in line with September’s CPI, after being frozen in 2010 and increased by 3.1% last year.
Ministers also confirmed that support for disabled people will be protected with a 5.2% increase to their benefits.

RPI/CPI: OUTCOME OF THE JUDICIAL REVIEW

Further to Newsletter Number 80, we have now been granted leave to appeal against the High Court judgement on the first two grounds (which were ours). The other group of litigants has been refused permission to appeal on their two further grounds.
Next week we will be meeting with our lawyers and fellow litigants to decide whether, in fact, to proceed to appeal. We will need to carefully weigh our chances of success and our likely share of the costs but, at this stage, it seems likely that we will decide to appeal. If we do so decide, we will try to do so in conjunction with the other group of litigants, so as to further spread the costs.
As previously advised, in the light of the High Court judgement, we will also be exploring separately with our lawyers the scope for pursuing the “financial package” cases. Members will have until March 2014 to lodge complaints with Civil Service Pensions. So, there is no need to rush this and I ask you to be patient for a while longer. It will be best to proceed on the basis of sound legal advice.
We will continue to keep you posted as things develop.

SAVINGS CREDIT THRESHOLD

In Newsletter Number 79, I mentioned that the Savings Credit threshold will rise from to £111.10 for a single pensioner and to £177.20 for a couple. The Minister has subsequently admitted to the House that DWP made a mistake in their calculations. (You can’t get the staff.) In fact, the threshold will rise to £111.80 for a single pensioner and to £178.35 for a couple.
Yours sincerely
[FONT=&quot]John Amos[/FONT]

John Amos
Deputy General Secretary

Ripoff_2

Another mile stone, over 95k signatures has just passed so please one final push to hit the 100k before the New year would be useful.

I have also just picked up this tweet from Ros Altman of Saga, I assume therefore there is some substance in it. I don't mean to alarm anyone but people need to take the implications on board for the future.

Tweet as follows:
Webb says future DB employer schemes may not have to offer inflation linking. Gov already paved way with cash balance changes

I can't see how that would benefit anyone apart from employers. Private pensions reduced in value quite rapidly even when we had RPI indexing ( we all know that pension inflation is higher than both the RPI and CPI) and even more rapid reduction now with the Gvmt Robbery Tax CPI, so NO inflation linkings sounds madness to me. Why would anyone then save for a pension that doesn't keep up in some way with inflation, other than to have a pension pot, maybe that's the plan call it a Savings pot and NOT a pension and hey presto you have got rid of private pensions all together. Is that too cynical?

The only true pension would then be the State. Anyone who has not yet claimed their pension should take note of this and delve further. You could end up with a Savings Pot and NOT the indexed pension you thought you were getting. I might be wrong but do you TRUST this lot? The CPI robbery tells you to be weary, very weary of Webb, Cameron, Osborne, Clegg and Co.

Andy_L

Ripoff wrote: »

Why would anyone then save for a pension that doesn't keep up in some way with inflation, other than to have a pension pot, maybe that's the plan call it a Savings pot

Non-index-linked is a common option with money purchase pensions. You get a far higher pension initially, which is then eroded by inflation. For many that's a better match to their lifestyle in retirement.

If the choice in a company is no pension/money purchase/or DB with no index-linking the DB scheme could well still be the best

viridens

The petition should reach the signatures target before Christmas. Hooray! But I'll say it one more time..

I still don't understand why it has taken so long when even a low percentage response from either existing pensioners or serving public sector workers would have far exceeded 100K.

I remain concerned that the government PR machine has done a good job in poisoning public sympathy by stirring up jealousy, and painting PS pensioners as greedy parasites who hamper financial recovery. Consequently, our cause may not be a popular one for MPs to support.

Clearly, we do not want this opportunity to be wasted. Committed, eloquent and properly informed forceful speakers are required to take our cause forward in the debate. Who are these MPs?

P.S. I wonder if govt will announce that they are changing their own index linking at this time as a gambit?

Ripoff_2

Nearly 99k people have signed the e-petition, just a final push to get over 100k. Thanks [URL="mhtml:{6EF71D81-FCE8-447B-947D-380BDD9A9C3B}mid://00000037/!x-usc:http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions"]http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions[/URL]

Hopefully we will hit the 100k by the new year and even higher than that with any luck. The higher the number the more Gvmt has to take notice, there are many votes behind these signatures.

I tend to echo Veridens last post, the Gvmt PR machine has been working overtime.
Divide and conquer comes to mind, drive a wedge between Public and Private and that should do the trick, but it is up to us not to let them do that. We, both Public and Private are being hit very hard by this robbery, so don't let the Gvmt PR machine win. WE, Public and Private should be fighting for a better pension for all, NOT fighting each other and certainly NOT driving pensions to the lowest level as the Gvmt are trying to do. Private pensions need to be made better, not drive public pensions to the same level.

Lets ALL stand together, worker, pensioner, Public and Private and so NO, enough is enough. This Government is not going to steal, Rob and cheat us anymore, we are not going to let you get away with this daylight robbery and NO you are not going to drive a wedge between us. As I have said many times before, this is a fight between RIGHT and WRONG and this theft, this disgraceful robbery is quite simply WRONG and WE ALL, Private and Public need to make this fact to Government in no uncertain terms. Don't let them steal from you!

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

(Notice I didn't say prosperous one, no chance with CPI?)

Regards Ripoff

Interested_Taxpayer

Great News :T

• PCS Comment

100,000 say reverse pensions switch

15 December 2011
A petition started by a PCS member from Scotland has topped 100,000 signatures which means MPs have to consider debating the topic.
The petition - on a government website - criticises the change of the measure used to upgrade pensions in the private and public sectors from the Retail Price Index (RPI) to the usually-lower Consumer Price Index (CPI).
This will cost people thousands of pounds over a lifetime – cutting 20% from the value of a pension over 20 years of retirement.
The petition was drawn up by Jim Singer, aged 59, who works for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in Aberdeen. He is a PCS member but not a union rep.
Jane Aitchison, president of PCS in the DWP, said: “Jim has shown that one person can make a difference by inspiring 100,000 people to sign a petition.
“Well done Jim. We are proud to have you as a member of our DWP group.”
Jim says he is “elated and proud” that the petition has passed 100,000 signatures.
MPs in the PCS parliamentary group will now push for a debate on the issue of the change from RPI to CPI.

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/1535

viridens

Whoopee! -We made it!
(but read my post# 1166 above..)

Squire_Fulwood

viridens wrote: »

I still don't understand why it has taken so long when even a low percentage response from either existing pensioners or serving public sector workers would have far exceeded 100K.

It is odd that the number of people whose pension will be affected far exceeds the number of people who have signed the petition. I don't know the reason for this but there could be people who don't care about their pension, don't understand inflation, have never heard of the petition and so on.

To try to help I sent a message to someone in BT this morning. They have a circulation list for a large group of people who used to work together. The email explained that we were approaching 100,000 and I asked that it be circulated in case anyone had not signed.

I have been watching the numbers clock up all day. I am not saying I made a difference but it felt good.

Were the numbers going up this fast before today because I have not been keeping track.

fwor

Squire_Fulwood wrote: »

Were the numbers going up this fast before today because I have not been keeping track.

No - they weren't. I'd been keeping a track (not accurately, but just visiting the epetitions site a couple of times a day) and it really took off today - so perhaps it was you!

I share the views above, which viridens put into words well: "I remain concerned that the government PR machine has done a good job in poisoning public sympathy by stirring up jealousy, and painting PS pensioners as greedy parasites who hamper financial recovery."

The attempts to poison public opinion are a not-very-well-hidden theme underlying the comments of almost all of the government spokesmen/women when interviewed on TV, and it's seldom countered.

It was good to hear a bit more balance on one news programme last week, which pointed out that the median PS pension currently stands at (IIRC) just £5.6k p.a. - which does put things into perspective a bit better.