A Message to Pensioners:

Ten reasons to vote Green

The Problem for Pensioners

Modern society is supposed to be about progress – but we don’t see much progress in the treatment of pensioners. In fact we’ve gone backwards. We used to see the state pension as a civic right. Now it seems we see it as almost a charitable handout. That’s not progress. Britain's state pensioners, two-thirds of whom are currently living in poverty, are still effectively penalised for having savings or private pensions, and the system still discriminates against some women. To make matters worse, over-complicated, intimidating, and humiliating means testing is so off-putting that the Government is planning for only 73% of pensioners to claim the full benefits they're entitled to. And that's not to mention the under-funded, over-stretched condition of today's NHS and public transport systems, which severely affects pensioners' mobility and access to basic health services.

The Solution for Pensioners

The Green Party believes in progress. We are committed to improving the NHS, reinvigorating public transport, and providing pensioners with a decent and unconditional Citizen’s Pension. Here are ten reasons for pensioners to vote Green:

1. The Green Party would ensure a decent pension. We would introduce a Citizen’s Pension, which will be up-rated annually in line with the increase in either a) the price of basic goods and services, or b) average earnings, whichever is greater.

2. The Green Party would make everyone eligible for state pension at age 60 - unconditionally, without means testing, and with no penalty for those who have paid less National Insurance.

3. The Green party would stop the tax relief on private pension plans. Why should we be giving tax relief to people already wealthy enough to have a big private pension? That's a bit like taxing higher incomes less than we tax lower incomes. Through ending this tax relief, we would free up an extra £13 billion a year to be ploughed into the basic state pension - to make sure the money goes where it's most needed.

4. The Green Party would end pensioners' means testing once and for all. The state pension must be seen as a civic right due to all members of society. That would be Real Progress. We would also advise every local authority to set up a Pensioners’ Rights Unit to work with pensioners and pensioners groups, with Citizens Advice Bureaux and government agencies, to aim for as close to 100% take-up of pensioners’ benefits as we can get.

5. The Green Party would urge every local authority to peg pensioners' council tax to the rate of inflation - not to increase it as their house increases in value. Forcing people on low incomes to pay high council tax at the expense of adequate food and heating due to house price rises is not progress.

6. The Green Party would pass a Home Energy Conservation Act to achieve 30% energy savings within 10 years. We would prioritise pensioners and low-income households. This would abolish fuel poverty, cut pollution, help tackle climate change and create local jobs.

7. The Green Party would end the £11 billion pensions scam. The Government is proposing to give pensioners a £30,000 lump sum at age 70 if they stay in work. Of course the Green Party supports pensioners’ right to carry on working if they want to. But this latest plan is a fraud:

a. Under this scheme, all the time you’re still working you’re not drawing your pension but you are paying tax.

b. For pensioners, it means gambling on your longevity. For the Government, it’s a certain money-spinner – and not just because a proportion of pensioners will die before they get their lump sum.

c. If all pensioners put off retiring to claim that lump sum, and didn’t claim their pension for those five years but did carry on paying tax, the government would be £11 billion better off. Pensioners as a group would have gone without £11 billion. This scheme means cheating Britain’s senior citizens out of up to £11 billion. That’s not progress.

The Green Party would safeguard the right of pensioners to work beyond age 65 if they choose to – without denying them their pension.

8. Green policies could cut current NHS costs by up to 20%. The NHS spends one-fifth of its budget dealing with illness that needn’t have arisen in the first place. Green Party policies concerned with wealth redistribution, improving work-life balance, and reducing pollution would diminish the health-damaging effects of poverty, stress, and pollution in the UK - leaving more money to spend on improving the health service.

9. The Green Party would improve pensioner's mobility. We would reverse the deterioration of Britain's public transport by scrapping the current Government's £30 billion plan to build more roads and redirect that £30 billion into better and cheaper public transport, traffic calming, improved transport provision for disabled people and pedestrians, and other Green transport initiatives. We would also re-regulate the buses to make them more reliable; improve journey times through widespread bus priority measures; ensure that bus companies can’t just shut down important bus services on the grounds that those routes are less profitable than the more popular routes; and introduce a free regional travel scheme for all pensioners. Every pensioner should have a pass that entitles them to travel free on all local services and from their home to the nearest major town or city.

10. The Green Party would introduce a Minister for Older People to tackle age discrimination and ensure that pensioners' concerns are directly addressed and represented at the highest level.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, the Green Party is unlikely to sweep into power at this general election. Yet we have an unprecedented opportunity to make our presence clearly felt in over 200 constituencies. As we always say to voters, it’s best to vote for what you want and what you believe in. Why settle for the best of a bad bunch when you can vote Green and let the major parties know that our reinvigorating and sustainable policies are what this country really needs. Every vote for the Green Party not only increases our realistic chances of gaining a voice in Westminster, but also puts pressure on the Government to follow our lead.

Ultimately, our message to pensioners and to the whole electorate this year is this:

If you want progress - Real Progress - vote Green.