Nobody would disagree with Nigel Keogh on the importance of people making arrangements during their working lives for an adequate income in retirement. However, I think it is going too far to assert that a reduction in the benefits paid from public sector schemes would result in poverty, requiring additional state support.
Millions of pensioners are already surviving on their basic state pension, plus other benefits such as a winter fuel allowance, free bus travel and free prescriptions. If I were one of them, I would not be persuaded that a former public sector worker needed extra support to supplement his diminished pension scheme benefits. It is gratifying that all political parties are committed to increasing state pensions by more than the annual rises in the retail price index, but this will inevitably lead to compensating reductions elsewhere.
Any changes to public sector pension schemes are going to lead to a reduction in the living standards of their beneficiaries. However, this must be balanced against the reduced living standards the working population will have to endure over the coming years of tax increases.
There are hardships ahead for all of us, but poverty, as it is understood by most of the world's population, will thankfully be avoided.
John Hopwood, Cambridgeshire County Council
