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End free TV licences and bus passes for pensioners, peers say | |
(about 7 hours later) | |
Free TV licences, winter fuel payments and other "outdated" age-related benefits should be scrapped, a group of peers has said, with the money spent on housing and training for young people. | |
The Committee on Intergenerational Fairness said subsidising licences for over-75s were no longer justified given improvements in pensioners' incomes. | |
It also called for free bus passes for the over-65s to be ended. | |
Campaigners warned against changes, saying pensioner poverty was rising. | |
The committee said intergenerational fairness was being "exacerbated" by an ageing population, the 2008 global financial crisis and successive government policies that have failed to consider the issue. | |
It also says the triple lock guarantee for the state pension - which ensures the weekly allowance rises by a minimum of 2.5% every year - should be reconsidered. | |
According to its report, many pensioner households are now, on average, better off than their working age counterparts, both in terms of income after housing costs and overall household wealth. | |
"We are calling for some of the outdated benefits based purely on age to be removed," said Lord True, the Conservative peer who chairs the committee. | "We are calling for some of the outdated benefits based purely on age to be removed," said Lord True, the Conservative peer who chairs the committee. |
He said the universal benefits were "justified when pensioner households were at the bottom of the income scale, but that is no longer the case". | |
Young people were getting a raw deal in many areas, the committee said. | |
It urged action to reduce exploitation in the rental sector, increase affordable housing and expand further education, as well as for an increased focus on vocational support for non-graduates. | |
The cross-party group of peers said the change was an opportunity for free TV licences to be gradually withdrawn. | |
The BBC is currently consulting on future options for free TV licences. | |
The broadcaster will take over responsibility for the entitlement - first introduced in 2000 - from the government in the summer of 2020. | |
The Centre for Ageing Better warned against "tinkering" with existing benefits, saying pensioner poverty was increasing for the first time in a decade. | |
"This is not about old versus young," said its chief executive, Dr Anna Dixon. | "This is not about old versus young," said its chief executive, Dr Anna Dixon. |
"It is about creating a society where everyone, regardless of income or background, can enjoy every stage of life. | "It is about creating a society where everyone, regardless of income or background, can enjoy every stage of life. |
"Headline-grabbing proposals like abolishing free TV licences based on age risk distracting from the big structural changes needed across housing, work and communities." | "Headline-grabbing proposals like abolishing free TV licences based on age risk distracting from the big structural changes needed across housing, work and communities." |
Are you over 75? How would abolishing the free TV licence, bus pass or winter fuel allowance affect you? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk. | |
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