Government ending concessionary fares fror eldely and disabled!!

mustrum_ridcully

opinions4u wrote: »

Why's it terrible?

1) Just because somebody is old doesn't mean they are hard up.
2) An old person uses up the same amount of space on board as a younger person.
3) Why should a younger taxpayer fund the price of a seat for an older taxpayer?

We've just had 13 years of old people being given something for nothing to buy their vote at election time.

While the older generation might enjoy spending their winter fuel allowances on a few weeks in Benidorm some are beginning to realise that their children and grandchildren are struggling to pay the bills while they get free TV licences, subsidised heating and free transport.

Would these be the same pensioners that paid for your healthcare, education, child benefit etc...?

You think pensioners didn't struggle to pay bills we they were younger? They had to cope with bank of england base rates of up to 17%, so mortgages would easily have been 20%.

What's the maximum rate of tax you might pay today? Well back in the 70's the highest rate of income tax was 83%.

Finally, are you happy with the prospect of older drivers who might just about be OK for short drives in town getting into their cars and doing long motorway journeys?

Rover_Driver

Frogletina wrote: »

Ah, I can see where the confusion with my statement lies, and I apologise for that.

The point I intended to make was that the state pension age is not 60 any more but is later than that.

A woman who is 60 today, born on 3rd September 1951 - will not get her state pension until Sunday 6th January 2013. As such she will not, at least in my city, get a concessionary bus pass until that date. She will then be 61 and 4 months of age.

Neither will a man, his entitlement to a bus pass is now the same as a woman - if he was 60 today he wouldn't get his bus pass until 6th January 2013 either, although he won't receive the state pension until he is 65.

Tilt

mustrum_ridcully wrote: »

Would these be the same pensioners that paid for your healthcare, education, child benefit etc...?

You think pensioners didn't struggle to pay bills we they were younger? They had to cope with bank of england base rates of up to 17%, so mortgages would easily have been 20%.

What's the maximum rate of tax you might pay today? Well back in the 70's the highest rate of income tax was 83%.

Finally, are you happy with the prospect of older drivers who might just about be OK for short drives in town getting into their cars and doing long motorway journeys?

Hear where your'e comming from but there are a lot of 'new' pensioners who are also getting this entitlement that have done non of that. Such as sucessfull asylum seekers ect.

Frogletina

Rover_Driver wrote: »

Neither will a man, his entitlement to a bus pass is now the same as a woman - if he was 60 today he wouldn't get his bus pass until 6th January 2013 either, although he won't receive the state pension until he is 65.

I have checked and my entitlement date is the same as my state pension date - I have to say that I assumed it was the same for men. I stand corrected.

My initial point was that no-one gets a bus pass now at 60, whereas men and women used to both get one at that age.

lilac_lady

Soon every concession will be means tested and the people who didn't save or put money into a pension will be rewarded again.

opinions4u

mustrum_ridcully wrote: »

Would these be the same pensioners that paid for your healthcare, education, child benefit etc...?

Maybe they did. But they didn't also have to pay for some of the freebies Mr Brown started throwing at the elderly in more recent years. And don't forget that the working population of today is having to pay for the healthcare of a hell of a lot more old people than those who are now retired ever had to fund.

You think pensioners didn't struggle to pay bills we they were younger? They had to cope with bank of england base rates of up to 17%, so mortgages would easily have been 20%.

The highest mortgage rates I can see since 1960 are around the 18% mark. If it helps, I have paid over 15% on a mortgage. And investment returns were much higher when interest rates were higher - old endowments with tax relief made a mint, mine tanked leaving me with mortgage debt I didn't expect. And lots of interest on lower house prices costs the same as lower rates on more expensive houses.

Historical Bank of England Rates

Historic Mortgage Rates

What's the maximum rate of tax you might pay today? Well back in the 70's the highest rate of income tax was 83%.

I'm well aware of that. But you will also be aware that just about nobody paid that rate because they all got up and left the country and stopped contributing to Great Britain Limited.

And don't forget the older generation was able to pack their kids off to university for free. And get tax relief via a covenant for student living expenses. Parents of today's kids are expected to find £9k a year unless they wish their offspring to spend the next 30 years in debt. For an average earner on £30k a year that would increase the tax and NI bill from around £7k at present to £16k a year.

And as for final salary pension schemes, effectively killed off by government tax grabs that have in part funded freebies for oldies. How stupid and short sighted is that?

Finally, are you happy with the prospect of older drivers who might just about be OK for short drives in town getting into their cars and doing long motorway journeys?

Older drivers are, statstically speaking, the safest on the roads. A typical full price coach fare is still cheaper than petrol and wear and tear on a car.

My post was very clear. It wasn't about who paid what for who. It wasn't even an attack on the elderly. It's about what is affordable and prudent for the running of the nation's finances and how Government can make nice fluffy awards that undermine that in the name of buying votes.

Using the benefits system to buy the votes of old people with money the nation couldn't afford, regardless of the personal situation of the recipients, is financially reckless and part of the reason why our economy's up the creek without a paddle now.

I'm much closer to retirement than I am to wearing shorts for school. So I am not arguing from a point of self-interest. Some of the things the state chooses to spend money on simply breed a culture of reliance and entitlement. Which is, at the end of the day, bad for society as a whole.

moonrakerz

alggomas wrote: »

" Government ending concessionary fares fror eldely and disabled!!" (sic)

Do you write headlines for The Daily Mail in your spare time too ?

poppasmurf_bewdley

I'm over 60 and use by free bus pass regularly as it saves me having to pay parking charges levied by the thieving local Tories on our council.

Many of my friends also use their passes regularly, but one thing comes up very often, and that is what if the government ever abolished them. I can see the Tories thinking about it but it would be fatal for them at the ballot box as over 60's are far more likely to vote than any other group at a general election.

Most over 60's I speak to would be happy to make a contribution of, say 20p, each time we use our passes if it meant keeping the passes, as I understand that is about what the bus company gets from the council each time a pass is used.

Hammyman

mustrum_ridcully wrote: »

Would these be the same pensioners that paid for your healthcare, education, child benefit etc...?

Like my FIL who last worked 3 decades ago, became a drunk and has been nothing but a drain on society since?

bigjl.

Hammyman wrote: »

Like my FIL who last worked 3 decades ago, became a drunk and has been nothing but a drain on society since?

Never mind it will be your turn soon.