Budget 2006: Stakeholders respond

ePolitix.com stakeholders respond to some of the key points in the 2006 Budget.

 

 

 

Older People

Stakeholder Response: Help the Aged

Mervyn Kohler, head of public affairs at Help the Aged, said: "It is a disgrace that the chancellor served up this year's Budget with no extra help for pensioners.

"Our country's older people are already battered by fuel price rises and growing bills for Council Tax and water, but the government which found a pre-election bribe for older pensioners last year cannot renew it for 2006.

"This exposes a shameful level of political expediency.

"Handouts are not the answer to pensioner poverty, but they help.

"Structural reform and improvement of the state pension arrangements is desperately overdue, but in his wide-ranging Budget speech which presented a vision for a successful Britain, the chancellor found nothing to say at all to say on this urgent issue.

"By not re-investing the £3.8bn in unclaimed means-tested benefits from poorer older people, Gordon Brown has presented an Ebeneezer Scrooge Budget that will do precious little to address the scar of pensioner poverty."

 

Stakeholder Response: Age Concern

Gordon Lishman, Age Concern’s director general, said: "This is a terrible 10th Budget for today's and tomorrow's pensioners.

"The chancellor has missed yet another opportunity to meet the needs of our ageing population."

No help with Council Tax

"It beggars belief that the chancellor has denied pensioners any extra help this year with their Council Tax bills, just as a new round of bills is set to cause anxiety for millions.

"Council Tax is a huge financial burden for many pensioners who are living on a low, fixed income.

"We urgently need a fairer system of taxation in place of Council Tax which is linked to people's ability to pay."

Pensions

"It is hugely worrying that the chancellor failed to set out government support for Turner’s recommendations on pensions reform.

"A bold white paper which addresses the needs of women, carers, low paid workers and those without access to a second pension is desperately needed.

"At the heart of this, there should be a basic state pension of at least £114 per week which is available to all."

Fuel bills

"The continuation of the Winter Fuel Payment and help with insulation are welcome, but more needs to be done to help older people meet the huge hikes in energy bills.

"Spiralling household costs are causing widespread anxiety."

Free bus travel

"Introducing a national system of free bus travel will be very popular with pensioners and will help many to stay in touch with friends and family. But 2008 is too long to wait."

Stakeholder Response: Local Government Association