What's no longer good value for money?

Nebulous2

I'm on a campaign against the caravan and motorhome club, previously the caravan club. They've allowed their budget to go completely out of control, post- covid, in the expectation people would simply keep paying. A site that used to cost £18 a night is now around £38. 

EssexExile

ColdIron said:

Hurrah for the triple lock. I'm retired and have 'paid into the system'. I would also support a huge engorgement of NHS funding now that I might need it

I'm retired too and, having been very careful with money over my life, I now have plenty. I don't need a triple locked pension, I wish the government would give their spare money to people who need it.

strawb_shortcake

Kitchen roll, it's getting more and more expensive, I'm not sure it's really needed I keep buying it as I'm lazy and it's convenient. It probably isn't the greenest of products either, when you  take into account manufacturing, packaging, transport and disposal.

ColdIron

EssexExile said:

ColdIron said:

Hurrah for the triple lock. I'm retired and have 'paid into the system'. I would also support a huge engorgement of NHS funding now that I might need it

I'm retired too and, having been very careful with money over my life, I now have plenty. I don't need a triple locked pension, I wish the government would give their spare money to people who need it.

It was a tongue in cheek response as I hope you realise, but there are plenty of OAPs just getting by on the state pension alone, which which can be a grim existence. I'm pretty certain that they need every bit of it

But that's the nature of universal benefits. Perhaps the Govt. should just reduce it for all. Or perhaps they should apply means testing and give the 'spare money' to civil servants and Fujitsu instead. Or maybe there should be a simple opt out option, I wonder how popular it would be

It's an old and thorny problem with no easy answers. Any system will have winners and losers

Indout96

Exodi said:

2022-2023, pensioners enjoy a 10.1% increase on account of inflation. Workers wages increase in response to inflation in 2023-2024, pensioners enjoy a 8.5% increase on account of worker pay increases, a tasty little double dip 

My rise last year was 2%. this year 2.5% but I pretty sure my 2.5% is more than 8.5% of the pension. Stop getting hung up on percentages and look at amounts. 

But back on track -
New cars are stupidly priced, the whole industry is only propped up by PCP / PCH which is the work of the devil.

jbrassy

Indout96 said:

Exodi said:

2022-2023, pensioners enjoy a 10.1% increase on account of inflation. Workers wages increase in response to inflation in 2023-2024, pensioners enjoy a 8.5% increase on account of worker pay increases, a tasty little double dip 

My rise last year was 2%. this year 2.5% but I pretty sure my 2.5% is more than 8.5% of the pension. Stop getting hung up on percentages and look at amounts. 

But back on track -
New cars are stupidly priced, the whole industry is only propped up by PCP / PCH which is the work of the devil.

Do you understand the concepts of nominal and real? If you get a 2% pay rise when the inflation rate is 10%, you are 8% poorer than last year. That is why percentages matter and it is important to get hung up on them.

That aside, if you care about amounts, spending on pensioner benefits is set to increase from £110 billion in 2022/23 to £153 billion in 2027/28 (source: OBR). 

General_Grant

ColdIron said:

EssexExile said:

ColdIron said:

Hurrah for the triple lock. I'm retired and have 'paid into the system'. I would also support a huge engorgement of NHS funding now that I might need it

I'm retired too and, having been very careful with money over my life, I now have plenty. I don't need a triple locked pension, I wish the government would give their spare money to people who need it.

It was a tongue in cheek response as I hope you realise, but there are plenty of OAPs just getting by on the state pension alone, which which can be a grim existence. I'm pretty certain that they need every bit of it

But that's the nature of universal benefits. Perhaps the Govt. should just reduce it for all. Or perhaps they should apply means testing and give the 'spare money' to civil servants and Fujitsu instead. Or maybe there should be a simple opt out option, I wonder how popular it would be

It's an old and thorny problem with no easy answers. Any system will have winners and losers

There is such an option in that, in order to receive a state pension, one does have to claim it.
If you don't claim it, you don't receive it.

eskbanker

Indout96 said:

Exodi said:

2022-2023, pensioners enjoy a 10.1% increase on account of inflation. Workers wages increase in response to inflation in 2023-2024, pensioners enjoy a 8.5% increase on account of worker pay increases, a tasty little double dip 

My rise last year was 2%. this year 2.5% but I pretty sure my 2.5% is more than 8.5% of the pension.

I've read that several times and still don't understand what you're trying to say - if the 2.5% is comparable with 8.5% of the pension, what does 2.5% actually represent, i.e. 2.5% of what?

Exodi

eskbanker said:

Indout96 said:

Exodi said:

2022-2023, pensioners enjoy a 10.1% increase on account of inflation. Workers wages increase in response to inflation in 2023-2024, pensioners enjoy a 8.5% increase on account of worker pay increases, a tasty little double dip 

My rise last year was 2%. this year 2.5% but I pretty sure my 2.5% is more than 8.5% of the pension.

I've read that several times and still don't understand what you're trying to say - if the 2.5% is comparable with 8.5% of the pension, what does 2.5% actually represent, i.e. 2.5% of what?

I may be wrong as it's not clear at all, but I think they are working and claiming the state pension concurrently, and while their wages increased by 2.5% compared to the 8.5% increase received on their state pension, the 2.5% increase in wages works out to be a higher £ amount.

Which is totally devoid of logic to the point, but nonetheless fitting with my earlier comment to batten down the hatches from retirees rushing to defend the absurd SP increases of the past few years.

ColdIron said:
But that's the nature of universal benefits. Perhaps the Govt. should just reduce it for all. Or perhaps they should apply means testing and give the 'spare money' to civil servants and Fujitsu instead. Or maybe there should be a simple opt out option, I wonder how popular it would be

Or instead of the extremely one sided examples you've listed, how about abandoning the triple lock, or just means testing it without also putting the proceeds up the wall? While we're at it means testing winter fuel payments.

All the helpless destitute pensioners you reference above shouldn't be affected by that. All the forumites who publicly joke about what bottles they'll be adding to their malt whiskey collection this year might though. Strawman for strawman.

overspender22

Train tickets are another. So expensive.