Pensions in the press

There’s not really a day goes by at the moment when the issue of pensions, be it public sector or state pensions, isn’t in the press.

Yesterday the Government announced that it wants those earning over £26,500 to increase their contributions next year in order to find the three per cent needed by the current 2008 scheme. So this isn’t directly related to the wider pensions talks – it’s about the deal made in 2008 which has always needed to find this additional three per cent. If it goes ahead this will see the pension contributions of more than two thirds of nurses increase further. However, the RCN fears these increased contributions will not go into the NHS pension scheme, but will go to the Treasury to help pay off deficits that nurses and healthcare assistants have had no part in creating.

Obviously this is completely unacceptable to the RCN and Dr Carter has been very vocal in making that point. He was quoted in the Financial Times, the Guardian, the Independent, the Sun, the Daily Express, the Times and the BBC.  He accused the Government of “divisive and provocative” behaviour and said that:  “This is nothing more than a tax on nurses, who are already in the middle of a two year pay freeze and then effectively face two more years of pay cuts after that - at a time when inflation is soaring. Having to pay an average of an extra £30 a month on top of this is a deeply unwelcome surprise Christmas present from the Government."