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Re: Todays Budget
For pensioners and pensioners to be today was one heck of a nasty budget.
For those already on pensions, the freezing of the April 2012 level possibly until the general allowances for those under 65 catch up has destroyed a principle set in place in 1957 and revised in 1975. A bedrock protection against living into retirement on a fixed income is in the process of being swept away.
Those who are unfortunate to retire whilst the drift down parity is taking place need not be concerned because from April 2013 (when the freeze begins) nobody retiring will get on it anyway as those retirees are stuck at pre-65 allowances. Loss by exclusion?.
As the vast majority of posters are probably too young to be concerned about retirement the good news is, repeated from last year, longevity is alive and well and a closely scrutinised statistic for elevating the retirement age so that IMO 70 is perhaps a good guestimate for those under 50. Of course many under 50 will never reach 70 but there wouldn't be much point in moving the target if it was achievable.
With the first steps of the privatisation of the NHS almost law, resentful anger about pensions and public sector workers possible regional pay and just about everybody excluding bankers well and truly fed up, we are moving towards the critical mass needed for a Thatcher type passive public backlash.
Any non mainstream parties who fancy their chances in the next election have a chance in a lifetime to court the mass of voters (grey) who Osborne managed to alienate big time.
I suspect a surprisingly small percentage of tax paying grannies lose anything on the allowance claw-back so in one move he got almost the lot. Brown got a small percentage when he scrapped the 10% rate and I suspect that the move was a nail in Liebours coffin. Osborne has trumped that big time like a kid let loose with a nail-gun and the biggest voting bloc , by miles, will not forget. I thought the Cons had a chance of two in a row without the stooges but today it has been blown away.
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