Struggling Students, Pampered Pensioners
I’ve written before that the politics of the far right, or, more accurately, the politics of hate, is easy. It is easy to hate, rather than endeavour to possess all the facts, to understand, to debate, to reason…to listen.
It is because of this ease that those appalled by Labour’s decision to means-test winter fuel payments for pensioners have failed to realise that it is just that, changing the winter fuel payments to a MEANS-TESTED benefit. But, of course, it is easy to throw political grenades, which is why the headlines read “war on pensioners”, “cut to winter fuel payments” “scrapping winter fuel payments”. Voters, readers, and watchers much prefer “black and white politics”, with one side pitted against the other, rather than making the effort to understand what is actually being debated.
Praise where its due. Rather oddly, GB News’ is one of the few headlines that highlights that in the Commons yesterday, a vote was held to make winter fuel payments MEANS-TESTED, not scrap them altogether. This vote went in favour of means-testing the winter fuel cash for pensioners, by a majority of 120. Nevertheless, the reaction to the policy and the subsequent vote tells us a lot about British politics.
Yes, people much prefer to understand politics through black and white, divisive lenses, rather than see it for the ambiguity and complexity which it actually is. Nevertheless, there is a clear reason why there has been such an outrage around means-testing pensioners’ winter fuel payments.
Pensioners, over 65s, and generally older citizens of the United Kingdom are by far the largest demographic to turn out and vote in general and local elections. In 2019, the turnout among over 65s stood above 70%, a figure that drops to just 48% for voters aged 18-24. When interviewed, young people don’t think that their vote matters as much as their older fellow citizens.
2024 was no different, with turnout greater in constituencies with the highest proportion of over 65-year-olds, and in constituencies with the highest proportion of homeowners.
As such, pensioners, over 65s, and homeowners (generally all belonging to the same demographic) are a much more tide-turning political force than younger voters, which is why we have a vicious cycle of young people believing that their vote doesn’t matter anyway, in turn leading them to forego voting. This is why pensions, the triple lock, and benefits – not to mention NIMBYism and the lack of good housing supply – are the dominating themes of British politics.
I have no doubt that this piece will be dismissed by older generations as the whining of a student who “has everything and knows the value of nothing as he is yet to achieve the wisdom that accompanies age”. Nevertheless, it is time that pensioner-politics is ended, and that the government, parliament, and all our public institutions seek to serve all people, not just the ones who shout the loudest, a pro-people politics once again.
Besides, the amount students get to live off is dictated by a means test of parental income. So, regardless of what age you are under 25, you are not viewed as financially independent under the Student Finance system – through which 1.5m students fund their time at university. As such, if a student’s (combined) parental income is above £25,000, they will get less of the full loan available to them depending on how much their parents earn. Now, £25,000 combined parental income is not much at all, especially when we factor in the financial strain families have been facing under the cost-of-living crisis and the fourteen years of tory rule. If a student’s combined parental income happens to be between £60-70,000, then they will receive the minimum loan. The only reason for this reduction in loan is that there is an assumptionthat parents will be filling the gap and supporting their children financially whilst they work towards their degree. This, I can tell you, is not what is happening.
No, instead students are having to balance part-time, often full-time, work alongside their studies in order to make ends meet. Students from low-income households like myself have seen their studies adversely affected because of the need to earn a living whilst they are enrolled in their full-time studies. 18% considering dropping out because of financial struggles, 54% stating that their academics had taken a clear hit because of student poverty, and Russell Group evidencingthat some students are living off just £2 a week. The picture is bleak for students across the UK, whose method of financing their university studies is MEANS-TESTED.
By contrast, 27% of pensioners live in millionaire households, with a further 22% of households headed by a pensioner having assets of £1m+. Whilst a million pounds does not stretch as far as it once did, it is a far cry from the £2 a week that some students are reportedly living off.
What I’m proposing is not radical, nor is it new. Nor is it black and white. Surely, however, if young peoples’ benefits are means-tested, then it is only right that older peoples’ and pensioners’ are also. Yes, you can ramble on that pensioners have worked their entire lives to be able to put their feet up (joints-pending), but, again, winter fuel payments are not being scrapped, they are being MEANS-TESTED. Furthermore, the state pension is already set to rise next year. Not so black and white, is it?
Yes, I am a student. No, I am not complaining about student debt. I’m complaining about the fact that the benefits I receive have always been means-tested, and now that this is being applied to what pensioners’ receive, the country is in uproar.
Older generations have always lamented that student loans are initially paid for by the taxpayer. Yet, the value of outstanding student loans is expected to reach £500 billion in the late 2040s. The value of outstanding pension liabilities stands at £5 trillion.
Nevertheless, should pensioners continue to complain, they can turn off their TV – for which they have a free TV licence – and use their free bus pass to take their grievances to the DWP or the Treasury.
Archie Rankin is a Fellow at the Sixteenth Council.
