Should rich OAPs give back benefits

[sid]

I agree, Jay. I also can't see how it's going to save any money. From 2016 everyone will be entitled to claim the new flat-rate pension (£144) based on their own contributions, which is considerably more than the £66 being mentioned at the moment. I can't work out whether these overseas claimants will get it or not. All very vague.

 

[Pickles]

[quote user="sid"]I agree, Jay. I also can't see how it's going to save any money. From 2016 everyone will be entitled to claim the new flat-rate pension (£144) based on their own contributions, which is considerably more than the £66 being mentioned at the moment. I can't work out whether these overseas claimants will get it or not. All very vague. [/quote]

Yes, but as you say, for new pensioners after 2016, the £144 depends on their own contributions - so there will be quite a few who don't get the full amount because of breaks in their contribution record or because they were contracted out (Hence the transitional arrangements, which will IIRC last quite a few years). And in addition, IIRC, some of the additional payments that are currently made to pensioners will no longer be paid to new pensioners. It's going to take quite a while until all pensioners are being paid the £144 flat rate.

[Rabbie]

Readding an article about this in yesterday's Torygraph it seems the people they want to restrict are non-British spouses of British expatriates. as these spouses have never worked or lived in the UK it seems reasonable to me to tighten the rules about their entitlement to UK benefits and pensions

[idun]

OVERSEAS CLAIMANTS:

I'll explain how this worked in my own family. My Uncle moved to Canada the year I was born, he had worked for approx 7 years in the UK at that time.

As he approached retirement age, my Dad asked him if he was entitled to a UK pension and so the pair of them duly contacted Newcastle about it. My Uncle was told that to get a reduced UK pension he would have to make some top up payments, which he did and received a reduced pension. However, whilst he was doing this, they asked if he was married and he said yes. So they sent his current wife a form and started paying her a pension too, based purely upon her husband getting a pension. She is german and moved to Canada in her 20's. She has never paid into the UK system at all and only ever been to the UK on a very short holiday once.

And that is what they are going to stop. Women like my Aunt getting a UK pension.