Sat 14 Dec 2019, 14:13 PM | Posted by editor
LETTER from Mark Langabeer, Newton Abbot Labour Party
A Channel 5 programme, entitled Can we afford to retire and presented by Michael Buerk, examined the growing pensions crisis. Around 20% of people are not saving anything for their retirement and around 1.5 million are forced to work beyond retirement age. There are 11 million people that have less than £100 in savings and there are 9 million who have no idea what pension they will receive on retirement.
Buerk interviewed a couple who wished to retire at 60 and wanted to travel around the world. Their combined income is around £57000 annually. A financial advisor pointed out that to have a reasonable income in retirement they would have to save around 15% of their salary for around 40 years. Those living from hand to mouth, simply can’t afford this. Many will have to sell their homes in order provide an income during retirement.
Those that rent are paying a quarter of their income in rent and this rises to a half in London. The cost of renting has risen by a 20%, and 33% in London during the last ten years. Over the same period, incomes have remained in real terms the same. The number of older people renting has doubled and on current trends, will rise to a third of the population by 2040. Tomorrow’s pensioners will increasingly rely only on state pensions.
Buerk interviewed a lady who was made redundant in her early 60s and was forced to use a food bank. She stated that, if you live on the edge, financially, one curve ball can send you off a cliff. She asked, “How is it possible that in a First World country, I have to rely on a food bank? Her situation will only multiply as those over 65 are set to rise to a quarter of Britain’s population by 2042.
In the past, many workers were in final salary pension schemes. These have been replaced by schemes that are entirely at the mercy of the market. That’s why the bosses have scrapped them. They don’t want to pick up the tab, in case there is a shortfall. Pensions are run by various financial institutions that take their cut in management fees.
We need a Labour Government to bring these sharks into public ownership and introduce a national pension scheme that prevents poverty in our old age.
