Latest news with #LizEmerson
Telegraph
6 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Taxpayers forced to pay extra £900m to retired teachers
Taxpayers have handed an extra £900m to retired teachers after the cost of their pensions hit almost £13bn a year, official figures show. The average retiree received £17,750 in 2024-25, according to the Teachers' Pension Scheme's annual report, more than double the amount spent per school pupil. Current teachers also received an extra 24pc in pension contributions, costing taxpayers £1.9bn more than the previous year. It comes as strikes by the National Education Union took almost 600 teaching days away from schools last year. Most members of the England and Wales Teachers' Pension Scheme are in state schools, but others work in participating independent schools, further education and higher education. Their employer must pay pension contributions of 28.6pc on their behalf, but they contribute just 9.4pc on average themselves. In return, they receive a guaranteed, inflation-linked pension for life. According to the report, the scheme spent £10.9bn on teachers' pensions, and just over £600m on dependant pensions last year. It also paid out £1.3bn in tax-free lump sums, taking the overall cost of pensions to £12.8bn, up from £11.9bn in 2023-24. The average retiree received £17,750, up from £16,600 the year before. Per student spending for 2024-25 was £7,920 in England and £7,926 in Wales. Liz Emerson, of the Intergenerational Foundation think tank, said 'unaffordable' teachers' pensions were putting children's education at risk. She said: 'Spending on their education should not be curtailed by cutting resources in order to pay for these unaffordable final salary pensions. 'Our children's educations are at risk today due to the iceberg of pension liabilities hidden by profligate promises made in the past. Politicians of all parties should hang their heads in shame that they continue to allow these overgenerous pension promises to persist. 'One solution would be to offer salary increases for equivalent decreases in tax payer-funded pension contribution rates.' Rising employer contributions The cost of employer pension contributions for current teachers – funded by the taxpayer – also increased from £7bn to £8.9bn following a 5pc hike in the amount schools are required to pay in. It was the latest in a series of increases to employer contributions necessitated by the rising costs of the scheme, which has now built up £291bn in pension promises. Schools were previously asked to contribute just 16.5pc as recently as 2019, but the amount has since been increased twice to hit the current level of 28.6pc. State schools are legally required to offer membership of the scheme, which left taxpayers footing the bill for an extra £1.25bn handed to schools to meet the increased cost of employer contributions last year. However, private schools are free to withdraw or close it to new staff, leaving some experts to predict they will be driven out for financial reasons. Hannah English, of pension advisors Hymans Robertson, said: 'As independent schools are facing increasing financial pressure, many schools – now over 400 – have opted out of the Teachers' Pension Scheme and around 300 have decided to stop offering it to new teachers. 'The question that independent schools are having to consider is, at what cost will they remain in the scheme? If staff are taking pay cuts – or facing possible redundancies – is this a price worth paying for a generous pension scheme?' Matt Wrack, of the NASUWT teaching union, said: 'Pensions are deferred salaries to which teachers contribute a significant proportion of their income throughout their working life. Further attacks on teachers and other public sector workers would be outrageous and would be resisted.'
Daily Mirror
13-06-2025
- Daily Mirror
'Free' bus and train scheme needs to be axed urgently says expert
Critics say the schemes are increasingly being used by well-off older workers, while younger people are left footing the bill through council tax and the congestion charge Free or cut-price travel for the over-60s is being questioned amid claims the perk is outdated, unfair and costing taxpayers an eye-watering half a billion pounds a year. More than 1.5 million Londoners currently enjoy free travel on buses, Tubes, trams and trains thanks to the 60+ Oyster Card and the Freedom Pass. But critics say the schemes are increasingly being used by well-off older workers, while younger people are left footing the bill through council tax and the congestion charge. Analysis by the Telegraph found the 60+ Oyster Card will cost Transport for London £135 million this year – more than double the £60 million it cost in 2016. That figure is expected to rocket to £185 million by 2027. Meanwhile, the Freedom Pass – which allows unlimited travel for over-66s and eligible disabled people – is already used by more than 900,000 people and costs £350 million a year. That cost is expected to hit £498 million by the end of the decade, with London's borough councils picking up the tab. This is well ahead of the cost of fare dodging across the network which is put at £130 million annually. Critics say the system is badly targeted and increasingly being abused. According to TfL, 60% of Oyster card holders aged 60-65 are still in paid work – and one in five use it to commute. That's despite the fact that workers in this age group earn an average of £42,000 a year – nearly double the £24,000 earned by people in their early twenties. Reem Ibrahim, from the Institute of Economic Affairs, said: 'It is difficult to justify a system where the wealthiest age group in the country is having their travel funded by taxpayers. 'The 60+ Oyster card and Freedom Pass schemes are financially unsustainable, and are not targeted to those genuinely in need of support. We urgently need a more targeted approach, rather than entrenching an unfair and costly system.' Liz Emerson, of the Intergenerational Foundation, added: 'At the very least, the Freedom Pass should be aligned with the state pension age. It's a perfect example of intergenerational unfairness at work with younger workers having to subsidise their older colleagues' free travel to work.' The 60+ Oyster Card was introduced by then-Mayor Boris Johnson in 2012. It is currently funded through Sadiq Khan's mayoral precept on council tax, along with money raised from the congestion charge. Once Londoners turn 66, they automatically qualify for the Freedom Pass. That £350 million cost is split between all 33 London boroughs – 28 of which were forced to hike council tax to the legal maximum of five per cent this year. The body running the Freedom Pass scheme has warned the £498 million forecast by 2029-30 is 'unsustainable'. Despite this, Khan has - so far - resisted pressure to scale back the schemes. During the pandemic, he banned the use of both the 60+ Oyster and Freedom Pass before 9am, generating £15 million in extra fares. But he later rejected a proposal to raise the qualifying age for the 60+ card by six months each year, which would have gradually phased it out to align with the Freedom Pass age. A spokesperson for Transport for London said: 'Both the Mayor and TfL are committed to making public transport in London as accessible, convenient, and affordable as possible. We regularly review our range of concessions to ensure that they continue to benefit Londoners, while also remaining affordable for TfL to operate.'
Metro
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Metro
Free travel for over-60s costs taxpayers £100,000,000 more than fare dodgers
Freebie travel benefits for pensioners are costing the taxpayer three times as much as London Underground fare dodgers do. More than 1.5million Londoners aged 60 and over can travel for free on London's buses, Tubes, trains and trams. But the schemes – the 60+ Oyster Card and the Freedom Pass – cost nearly £500million a year to fund, well over the £400million lost to fare-jumping nationwide, the Office of Rail and Road found. Transport for London (TfL) is predicted to spend £135million on the 60+ Oyster Card this year, up from £60million in 2016. As Britain faces an ageing population, the cost is expected to increase to £185million a year by 2027, according to an analysis by The Telegraph. The Freedom Pass for people over 66 costs London boroughs another £350million a year and will rise to £498million by the end of the decade. Almost one in 20 Tube passengers dodge fares, costing TfL £130million a year. The 60+ Oyster Card is available for Londoners aged between 60 and 65, among the highest earners in the capital, at £42,000 a year, double that of people in their 20s. TfL says 60% of 60+ Oyster Card holders are still working, with two in 10 using it to commute. The card, introduced by then-Mayor of London Boris Johnson in 2012, is funded by tax bills and daily driving fees like the congestion charge. Speaking to Metro, Liz Emerson, chief executive of the research charity International Foundation said: 'This is a disservice to younger colleagues who are paying more for their travel than those who still work and are over 60. 'It impacts their essential spending power and helps instead those who are older and wealthy. 'This is unfair for younger colleagues who already struggle with housing costs, wages and the cost-of-living crisis. More Trending 'The least the Mayor can do is align free London travel with the state pension age. A TfL spokesperson told Metro: 'Both the Mayor and TfL are committed to making public transport in London as accessible, convenient, and affordable as possible. View More » 'We regularly review our range of concessions to ensure that they continue to benefit Londoners, while also remaining affordable for TfL to operate.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Samurai sword killer 'screamed in delight' after nearly decapitating schoolboy MORE: British couple feared to have been on Air India flight named and pictured MORE: Three teenage girls admit killing 75-year-old man in the street Your free newsletter guide to the best London has on offer, from drinks deals to restaurant reviews.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Government accused of prioritising pensioners over children
A gulf between government spending on pensioners and children has widened by 170pc in the past two decades, new research suggests. Last year, public spending per pensioner was £12,600 higher than it was per child, according to a report by think tank the Intergenerational Foundation. It reveals spending on pensioners has increased by more than half in the past two decades, while the amount of taxpayer cash devoted to children has lagged. Between 2004 and 2024, spending on retirees went up by 55pc in real terms, while children saw an increase of just 20pc during the same period, the report said. Analysis showed taxpayers spent £31,000 per pensioner last year compared with £18,000 per child, while working-age adults cost £14,000. It comes after Rachel Reeves reversed her decision to strip most pensioners of the £200 winter fuel payment following a months-long public outcry. Liz Emerson, chief executive of the International Foundation, said government policy is overly favourable to pensioners because they are a key voting constituency. She said: 'Welcome, though rapid, ageing has expanded the welfare state for the old while support has been largely withdrawn from the young. Add the power of the grey vote, and it is all too tempting for governments to respond to older generations' wants, irrespective of their actual need.' She added this increasingly contrasted with societal difficulties faced by younger people. 'Younger generations face a polycrisis of low government investment, high housing costs, low welfare support, and high taxation. 'The fact that birth rates are falling may well indicate that younger generations do not believe they can provide the economic stability needed to bring up a family.' The research divided government spending on public services like the NHS, state pension, education and social care by the number of children, working-age adults and pensioners in the country. Britain's birthrate recently fell to a record low. The official fertility rate for England and Wales is 1.44 births per woman, significantly less than the 2.1 required to maintain population size. Figures published at the end of last year showed that the number of children born to British mothers had fallen by a quarter in 15 years. It suggests many more women are putting off having children, amid rising cost of living. The increase in state spending on pensioners has been partly driven by the pensions triple lock, which links state pension payments to inflation, wage growth or 2.5pc depending on whatever is highest. Between 2011 and 2025, the state pension for those who reached retirement age before 2016 rose from £102.15 to £169.50 per week, a 66pc increase. Those who hit retirement age after 2016 saw weekly payments go up from £155.65 to £221.20. The report concluded that the triple lock was not 'intergenerationally fair' amid a growing ageing population, referencing Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) projections that government spending on the state pension will increase from around 4.9pc of GDP last year to 7.9pc by 2074. It added that pension poverty had declined significantly in recent decades, from 28pc in 1995 to 16pc in 2023. Meanwhile, child poverty has remained consistently high with only a marginal decrease from 32pc to 30pc during the same period. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
10-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Government accused of prioritising pensioners over children
A gulf between Government spending on pensioners and children has widened by 170pc in the past two decades, new research suggests. Last year public spending per pensioner was £12,600 higher than it was per child, according to a report by think tank the Intergenerational Foundation. It reveals spending on pensioners has increased by more than half in the past two decades, while the amount of taxpayer cash devoted to children has lagged. Between 2004 and 2024 spending on retirees went up by 55pc in real terms, while children saw an increase of just 20pc during the same period, the report said. Analysis showed taxpayers spent £31,000 per pensioner last year compared with £18,000 per child, while working-age adults cost £14,000. It comes after Rachel Reeves reversed her decision to strip most pensioners of the £200 winter fuel payment following a months-long public outcry. Liz Emerson, chief executive of the International Foundation, said government policy is overly favourable to pensioners because they are a key voting constituency. 'Welcome, though rapid, ageing has expanded the welfare state for the old while support has been largely withdrawn from the young. Add the power of the grey vote, and it is all too tempting for governments to respond to older generations' wants, irrespective of their actual need.' She said this increasingly contrasted with societal difficulties faced by younger people. 'Younger generations face a polycrisis of low government investment, high housing costs, low welfare support, and high taxation.' 'The fact that birth rates are falling may well indicate that younger generations do not believe they can provide the economic stability needed to bring up a family,' Ms Emerson added. Triple lock 'unfair' on younger people- The research divided government spending on public services like the NHS, state pension, education and social care by the number of children, working-age adults and pensioners in the country. Britain's birthrate recently fell to a record low. The official fertility rate for England and Wales is 1.44 births per woman, significantly less than the 2.1 required to maintain population size. Figures published at the end of last year showed that the number of children born to British mothers had fallen by a quarter in 15 years. It suggests many more women are putting off having children, amid rising cost of living. The increase in state spending on pensioners has been partly driven by the pensions triple lock, which links state pension payments to inflation, wage growth or 2.5pc depending on whatever is highest. Between 2011 and 2025, the state pension for those who reached retirement age before 2016 rose from £102.15 to £169.50 per week, a 66pc increase. Those who hit retirement age after 2016 saw weekly payments go up from £155.65 to £221.20. The report concluded that the triple lock was not 'intergenerationally fair' amid a growing ageing population, referencing Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) projections that government spending on the state pension will increase from around 4.9pc of GDP last year to 7.9pc by 2074. It added that pension poverty had declined significantly in recent decades, from 28pc in 1995 to 16pc in 2023. Meanwhile, child poverty has remained consistently high with only a marginal decrease from 32pc to 30pc during the same period.
