Winter fuel allowance

[SteveClem]

We keep trying to refuse ours, but the buggers keep sending it every year. Seems a few people managed to opt out, no idea how they managed it. We just give it to the local hospice. Bonkers!

[firedrake1942]

Lucky you, but my mother who was by no means destitute, really valued hers. It made the difference of a few degrees for her in terms of central heating. For those worse off it means the difference between a reasonable quality of life and freezing.

[millerman]

Best way for the Government to go forward is to treat the winter fuel allowance as taxed income and a lot of OAP's pay tax!
Administratively easy and the least well off will be able to keep all the allowance

[les]

Well you won't have the hassle of refusing soon but others might have hassle from loosing it! Especially those who have worked all their lives and paid in.

[dalebrignall]

i am not at retirement age , but i believe if you have paid in all your life you should be intiled to the allowance , its just peter robbing paul to be honest

[SteveClem]

I just think benefits should go to people need them. Seems crazy to just give it to everyone over 65. I'd rather we got nothing and someone who needed it got more.

[les]

No prizes for guessing where your vote is going then! .

[firedrake1942]

do not disagree Clem, it seems absurd that a millionaire gets it too, but It is a universal benefit ! Much like family allowance, I had a good job which stillest me with too much month at the end of the pay period. I did not 'need' the child benefit, but have saved it to assist with University fees for my three voracious offspring since unlike me they all not benefit from grants and free tuition and be in debt until they are god knows what age, whilst the country they were born into does not actually value educating them to make itself better for the future. As someone above said, our parents and now us have paid in all our lives and are now being penalised for it. We seem to be able to afford 10% plus increases for MP's, useless nuclear weapons, pointless and self defeating foreign conflicts, whilst our citizens live in poverty, our health system is being run into the ground, our police and education services are being slashed, and our roads are full of holes..... but parts from that, what did the romans ever do for us ?

[twincamman]

The Government actually looked at means-testing the winter fuel allowance about 2-3 years ago and worked out that the cost of means-testing it would be more than any savings produced.
I can only conclude that this is a policy produced for idealogical reasons rather than economic ones.

[les]

That's interesting and it figures! Best left alone and those that feel bad about accepting it have the option of helping their favourite charities. Many of us do that regardless of fuel allowance eligibility.

[SteveClem]

Read today that the BBC are thinking of means testing the free tv licence for pensioners. Now that will put the cat amongst the pigeons!

[firedrake1942]

probably due to the fact that the Govt transferred the financial liability for this from Govt to BBC leaving it with a large financial hole. Never mind the over 70's can always get that wholly unbiased Sky and watch Fox news to be brainwashed, or watch on line with their top of the range computers.