If You Want To Know Why Certain Benefits Are Being Cut, Could This Be Why?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3485126/How-Britain-s-handouts-Polish-newspaper-produces-20-page-guide-making-UK-s-generous-benefits-system.html

Amazing, forget the language translator books, forget the tourist guides, it seems the Poles have got their priorities well in order.

[Gromit]

Sorry, your commonsense has failed you.

There is no finite pot and benefits do not go down if take up increases.
More people than ever are reaching pension age than ever before. But the pension benefit is not being reduced.

[New Judge]

And nor it should be (not for those who have made the necessary contributions, anyway).

Having said that, although the amount paid may not be diminishing the age at which it is to be paid is increasing so effectively all those (most notably women) who have suffered up to five years of "slippage" suffer a cut (which is considerable if you lose five years payments).

Pensions are somewhat different anyway. The government has 65 years (and rising) to "save" in order to pay out pensions. So it should come as no surprise that somebody born in 1951 will want their State pension this year. Of course they don't have 65 years to save for pension payments for a 64 year old who arrived from Poland last week. Although such arrivals may not qualify for a pension because of insufficient NI contributions they will qualify for retirement age benefits. I have not done the sums to find out how much they could claim but they will not be left destitute.

[anotheoldgit]

Gromit

/// There is no finite pot and benefits do not go down if take up increases. ///

No one said there was it was just a general usage term, note I enclosed the word 'pot' in apostrophise.

I also didn't say that benefits go down if take up increases, but I did infer that it stands to reason that if more are taking from the 'pot' it is also only reasonable to believe that cuts have to be made, in the overall benefit system.

So it seems that it is yours and not my common-sense that has failed you once again, sorry.

[Gromit]

AOG,

The nation is getting older and take up of the Old Age Pension grows daily. You seem to be arguing that this outflow needs to be capped and less money distributed to people of pension age, before the pot empties.