DEMAND STATE PENSION FAIRNESS

25 RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: january/february 2024 :: RMTnews On April 6, 2016 the government introduced a new Basic State Pension (BSP) for those reaching their State Pension Age after this date. The new state pension was a combination of the old BSP and the amount of State Second Pension, formally SERPS, individuals had built up during their working life’s. This new pension would be known as the “Single Tier State Pension”. However, while the intention of the government was to make this new state pension fairer and to take future pensioners out of potential poverty it left pre- April 6, 2016 pensioners on a lower BSP. In line with the Triple Lock Guarantee, which increases the BSP annually by either CPI, Average National Earnings or 2.5 per cent, the BSP will increase by 8.5 per cent from April 8,2024. This will result in the pre-2016 BSP increasing £13.30 a week to £169.50 pw and the new BSP increasing by £17.35 a week to £221.20pw. It is cleat that based on the higher new BSP the gap between the two state pensions will get wider and potentially leave pre-2016 pensioners poorer. The National Pensioners Convention (NPC) recently wrote to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremey Hunt, pointing out that the UK BSP is one of the least adequate in the industrial world and that there was an anomaly of the inequality between the basic state pension and the new state pension which is of concern to ordinary pensioners. The NPC asked the government how it intended to rectify this unfairness between pensioner groups based on age. RMT retired activists branches fully support the NPC campaign for state pension fairness and Wessex retired regional council activist Tony Perks has articulated the views of many retired members. Tony writes: “In 2016 the government created a new group of pensioners on a higher state pension than existing pensioners. After speaking to retired groups regarding the unfair, some would say unjust treatment of those that retired before the new higher rate BSP was introduced in April 2016 many retired people feel understandably short-changed and left behind in the chaotic economic world. “Every time there is a pension increase, the new state pension goes up more than the old pre-2016 pension and is starting to create an underclass of pensioners which is discriminating against older pensioners. RMT branches should join an alliance to campaign against this unfairness with not just the NPC but other retired member section in other unions as well as Age UK to bring this injustice to forefront,” he said. RMT’s retired branches are supportive of the NPC state pension campaign as well as other NPC campaigns which promote the welfare and interests of all pensioners, as a way of securing dignity, respect and financial security in retirement, now and for those who retire in the future. If you would like to know how you can get involved with your local RMT retired activist branch to campaign against injustices like the one above, please contact the RMT Pensions Officer, Paul Norris, at p.norris@rmt.org.uk or on 020 7529 8806. DEMAND STATE PENSION FAIRNESS Retired activists branches back campaign against unfair government pension changes PROTEST: RMT retired activists Ron Douglas and Tony Donaghey with National Pensioners Convention banner