The government has been told that it needs to make major changes Pension Millions of people have claimed whether it is to effectively deal with pensioners poverty in the UK.
Claimed by 1.3 million individuals, designed to bring pension credit Low -income pensioners Up to a living level. Under the current right, the contenders will see their income at the top of at least £ 227.10 in a week.
But the benefits should be done to improve more to improve cross-party work and improvement Pension The committee has warned, as well as changes to make it fair.
Despite being priced at £ 4,000 per year, pension credit take-up has hovering between 61 and 66 percent for a decade, an estimated 700,000 houses are eligible, but do not claim, the committee found the pensioner in its report. poverty,
A taper for pension credits should also be considered “reducing cliff-edge effects”, which currently recalls, it is added.
Under current rules, some Pensioners Income can be worse than people with low -income, just above the threshold. This is because the pension credit may recipient of others as ‘passport’ benefits Such as accommodation benefits, council tax support, hot home discounts, a free TV license, and help with dental treatment.
In winter last year, it was also associated with winter fuel payment, resulting in about 60,000 additional awards of profit. But “still has to go a long way,” says the committee’s report.
This urged the government to commit better target support for an aging society for an aging society for an UK-Wide, an aging society.
The number of pensioners in relative low income began to grow again in the 2010s, the cross-party group notes, reversing the decline from the 2000s. It was finished recently Cost of living The crisis, with 1.9 million pensioners (16 percent), is now living in relative poverty.
Committee chairman Debbie Abraham said: “To promote income, the government needs to come up with a strategy to take pension credit. It is a scam that has missed for so many years, often to claim profit through a profit, or lack of support.
“The fairness of the pension credit eligibility criteria where you are a penny above the threshold, you miss thousands of pounds, even if you miss it.
“After all, the government should decide what it thinks is enough for a dignified RetirementAnd then work to ensure that all pensioners are at least at that level.
A government spokesperson said: “Supporting pensioners is a highest priority, and thanks to our commitment to triple lock, millions of people will see an increase in their annual state pension from £ 1,900.
“But we know that there is a real risk that tomorrow’s pensioners will be poor than today, which is why we are reviving the Pension Commission, to deal with the obstacles that prevent many people from saving.”