Pensioner's 'perks' under review.

merrydance

Where I live in Dorset you do not get a free bus pass until you reach your state pension age - in my case 66. I am now 60 so do not qualify. However I do get free prescriptions and I belive - eye tests. When I celebrated my 60th people were saying your an OAP now, but no I am not until I am 66, tha's the only good thing I can think off about the changes in State Pension age. I am going to have to carry on working for another 6 years. I have a few health issues so a rest would have been nice. But hey that's life.

missbiggles1

jamesd wrote: »

About £11.7 billion a year. The most expensive part of the welfare budget is the State Pension at about £92.1 billion a year and the total benefit and tax credit budget is about £217 billion a year.

The core purpose of Child Benefit is to keep children out of absolute poverty at a time when things from poor education to poor food and medical care can have life-long adverse effects in health and income.

The unemployment benefits that seem to incense more people than others costs about 2.4 billion a year.

It's unfair to take JSA in isolation as many (most?) people claiming it will be claiming many other benefits as well.

bigadaj

missbiggles1 wrote: »

It's unfair to take JSA in isolation as many (most?) people claiming it will be claiming many other benefits as well.

Don't see why it's unfair.

It's just a statement of fact, people receiving jsa may well be receiving housing benefit and other benefits, but the jsa is an element of that.

Also don't forget that many people receiving jsa may well not be receiving anything else, I was made redundant in May started work again a month ago but claimed contribution based jsa whilst I was job searching. My assets were too much to claim any other benefits but I received basic jsa for several weeks.

Edit - though quotes here are ambiguous, James doesn't state his figure as jsa, and you obviously do, the actual figures may well be different in either of your scenarios.

atush

jamesd wrote: »

About £11.7 billion a year. The most expensive part of the welfare budget is the State Pension at about £92.1 billion a year and the total benefit and tax credit budget is about £217 billion a year.

The core purpose of Child Benefit is to keep children out of absolute poverty at a time when things from poor education to poor food and medical care can have life-long adverse effects in health and income.

The unemployment benefits that seem to incense more people than others costs about 2.4 billion a year.

Many other countries have a tax credit off income for each child, instead of cash paid to a parent. Again, it is in recognition that children cost money to clothe and feed.

atush

merrydance wrote: »

Where I live in Dorset you do not get a free bus pass until you reach your state pension age - in my case 66. I am now 60 so do not qualify. However I do get free prescriptions and I belive - eye tests. When I celebrated my 60th people were saying your an OAP now, but no I am not until I am 66, tha's the only good thing I can think off about the changes in State Pension age. I am going to have to carry on working for another 6 years. I have a few health issues so a rest would have been nice. But hey that's life.

Well that is your choice, but you could have saved to retire at 60 back int he 90's when they said your pension age was going up?

atush

bigadaj wrote: »

Don't see why it's unfair.

It's just a statement of fact, people receiving jsa may well be receiving housing benefit and other benefits, but the jsa is an element of that.

Also don't forget that many people receiving jsa may well not be receiving anything else, I was made redundant in May started work again a month ago but claimed contribution based jsa whilst I was job searching. My assets were too much to claim any other benefits but I received basic jsa for several weeks.

Edit - though quotes here are ambiguous, James doesn't state his figure as jsa, and you obviously do, the actual figures may well be different in either of your scenarios.

I agree, I have a friend getting contribution based JSA and nothing else.

jamesd

missbiggles1 wrote: »

It's unfair to take JSA in isolation as many (most?) people claiming it will be claiming many other benefits as well.

Often Housing Benefit as well but that seems to upset people less than unemployment benefits, at least until the family sizes start getting bigger than normal.

atush wrote: »

Many other countries have a tax credit off income for each child, instead of cash paid to a parent. Again, it is in recognition that children cost money to clothe and feed.

Yes, though one of the original purposes of the UK system was to have the money go to the woman rather than the man, with him assumed to be working and her not, in case he wasn't passing on as much of his pay as he should. A bit of extra protection.

atush

A bit of extra protection against men drinking or wh*ring thru their cash pay on a friday, sure. But this is the real world now.

WE could have a more normal system, esp now CB is taxed as income. I think you should get tax relief for each child against income. Would still help parents, but would not give a bonus for those who have more children then they can actually afford.

The benefits system could deal with those who have no income to get TR on.

GaleSF63

harz99 wrote: »

The only cost to the taxpayer would be the initial administrative time to start with and the costs relating to the physical card (production/postage etc.). These are repeated at renewal.


Usage of a pensioners travel permit, depending on where in the UK you are and what mode of travel, will cost either the flat payment which operators receive for accepting each use, or the actual fare forgone for the journey made (or a percentage thereof).


This why on some buses you just pass the card over a reader and may or may not get a ticket, whereas on others you have to state your destination and receive a ticket showing both boarding and destination points.

Here we have to state our destination (but no ticket).

I was just about to renew my pass after 5 years when in the post came a new one, with no expiry date and the same photo as the old one. Saving time and money presumably.

I rarely use it as my mobility isn't good and I have a car, but the bus stops right outside the Nationwide and you can't park very near!