- Conference
- 2025 National Retired Members Conference
- Date
- 6 June 2025
- Decision
- Carried as Amended
People are living in poverty when their resources are not enough to meet their basic needs and allow them to take part in society. This means that many older people struggle to cover food and energy bills and, as we know and have heard many times at Conference, many older people have one choice only – eat or heat. They don’t have the luxury of having savings set aside to pay should the heating malfunction, for example, and pensioners living in poverty certainly can’t afford to go out and socialise with friends and family.
The financial situation of the older person is generally linked to their circumstances over their lifetime and, in particular, to their employment history. Women are generally less well off than men in retirement reflecting their lower average earnings because of time out of work or working part-time to care for children and possibly older relatives. This is where the Gender Pay Gap becomes the Gender Pension Gap. Other factors associated with lower income (before and after retirement) are being black, being disabled, being carers and being self-employed.
The Cost of Living Crisis, which began in late 2021, has disproportionately impacted pensioners who mainly rely on fixed incomes and are more vulnerable to rising prices for essential goods and services. For those pensioners with savings, many have had to exhaust those savings which will reduce their long-term financial security.
The spiteful decision by Chancellor Rachel Reeves to cut the Winter Fuel Payment (WFP) for many older people has further increased the amount of older people in Pensioner Poverty at a time when they are struggling with rising energy prices. In November 2024 Age UK (using data from DWP) noted that 2.5 million older people were no longer eligible for WFP.
Many 60-year olds, particularly women, are not yet eligible for State Pension and are living without an income or surviving on life savings until they reach State Pension age.
It is no surprise, therefore, that Pensioner Poverty is on the rise. Motion 3 carried at National Retired Members’ Conference in Llandudno in October 2024 called for the State Pension to be no less than 70% of the Living Wage. It is estimated by the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (2024) that to reach a ‘minimum standard’ a single person needs about £14,000 a year, while a couple needs a combined £22,400. The new qualifying State Pension is around £11,973 a year. The old qualifying State Pension is around £9,110 a year. Unless pensioners have a good occupational pension this is totally inadequate.
The rise in Pensioner Poverty cannot continue, therefore Conference calls on the National Retired Members Committee to lobby the Government to set out a clear reform programme (whilst retaining the Triple Lock) in partnership with Age UK, NPC, TUC Pensioners, and all other relevant bodies.