Yesterday it emerged that Iain Duncan Smith, the Work & Pensions Secretary, had expressed a view that “wealthy” pensioners might consider repaying those universal benefits to which all pensioners are entitled. We were not surprised by the consternation and perfectly proper indignation which subsequently issued from several quarters. Such a suggestion invites a reopening over the old debate over whether such benefits should start to be means tested or not. Furthermore we are not aware of a mechanism whereby pensioners can repay their winter fuel allowance (to take an example) even if they wanted to. If one exists we are not aware of its existence.
It might reasonably be argued that the last Government gave away too much by introducing an automatic winter fuel allowance, free bus passes and free television licences. However these benefits, none of which are particularly high value or expensive to deliver, have been granted and they do make a difference to people's lives – albeit a small one. Withdrawing them or limiting access via means testing wouldn't save a meaningful amount of money and, less than two years from the next General Election, would be seen as a mean act by a struggling Government.
Means testing is always unfair and costly to administer. Inevitably it involves drawing an arbitrary line in the sand and paying people to work out who falls on the right side of it - or not as the case may be. It raises the question of how we determine whether or not somebody's wealthy. Is it because they're a multimillionaire or simply happen to have a few thousand hard earned pounds in the Bank? Perhaps the strongest objection to means testing – one frequently voiced by pensioners – is that they've all “paid into the system” during their working lives and should therefore all have an equal right to whatever morsels the State may care to cast their way.
It might reasonably be argued that the last Government gave away too much by introducing an automatic winter fuel allowance, free bus passes and free television licences. However these benefits, none of which are particularly high value or expensive to deliver, have been granted and they do make a difference to people's lives – albeit a small one. Withdrawing them or limiting access via means testing wouldn't save a meaningful amount of money and, less than two years from the next General Election, would be seen as a mean act by a struggling Government.
Means testing is always unfair and costly to administer. Inevitably it involves drawing an arbitrary line in the sand and paying people to work out who falls on the right side of it - or not as the case may be. It raises the question of how we determine whether or not somebody's wealthy. Is it because they're a multimillionaire or simply happen to have a few thousand hard earned pounds in the Bank? Perhaps the strongest objection to means testing – one frequently voiced by pensioners – is that they've all “paid into the system” during their working lives and should therefore all have an equal right to whatever morsels the State may care to cast their way.