Pensioners 'are hardest hit by rising inflation'

NEARLY 200,000 pensioners across Yorkshire are now living in poverty as new research reveals older people are being hit hardest by spiralling inflation.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show nearly one in five of the region's pensioners are living below the poverty line, with a report for regional development agency Yorkshire Forward warning the gap between rich and poor means there are now "two nations in old age".

The Age Matters study – by research body Yorkshire Futures – concludes that the shift towards private pensions means income disparities have widened as people move into old age, and women are hit particularly hard because "they are likely to have worked fewer years, due to social norms and childcare, and often for lower pay."

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It states: "While the current older generation is more affluent than those in the past, large disparities exist.

"There are, in a sense, 'two nations in old age', increasingly polarised by housing wealth.

"For those who have missed out on life's chances, for whatever reason, these chances become fewer in old age and the opportunities to replenish meagre resources diminish. Even among those with significant housing assets, income can be low."

The study suggests there are now around 180,000 older people living in poverty across Yorkshire – a figure roughly equivalent to a city the size of York.

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Pensioner hardship is one of the key areas being targeted by the Yorkshire Post's Communities in Need appeal, which launched on Saturday. The newspaper is calling on readers and businesses to make donations to our anti-poverty fund, which will be distributed to grassroots community projects early in the new year.

Research published this week for the charity Age UK makes it clear that the current economic climate is hitting older people particularly hard, due to the higher proportion of their income they spend on food and utility bills. Food and fuel prices have risen faster than most other commodities over recent years.

The study concluded pensioners are up to 710 a year worse off than other households as a result of the rising cost of living over the past 18 months.

Gordon Morris, managing director of Age UK Enterprises, said: "In the aftermath of a global recession many households are struggling with their finances but those in later life are disproportionately affected."

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Economist Ros Altmann, director general of Saga, said the cost of living for pensioners has risen by almost a third since 2003.

"The effect of inflation is incredibly damaging for pensioners," she said. "Not only are the price rises they face much higher than for the rest of us – because they spend less on consumer goods that have fallen in price, and more on basics and insurance where price rises have been much higher – but they have also seen a dramatic fall in their savings income as interest rates have been cut.

"The Government has recently announced changing pension uprating to increase in line with the Consumer Price Index, but this could seriously damage pensioner income over time. Pensioners have no other way of making up their income shortfalls, as they are stuck on benefits and income from savings."

A Department for Work and Pensions spokeswoman insisted, however, that the Government had introduced a number of measures to support pensioners.

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"We're committed to ensuring that pensioners get the support they need in retirement," she said. "This is why we restored the link with earnings and brought in a 'triple guarantee' for the basic state pension. These changes will mean that someone retiring next year will now be 15,000 better off over their retirement.

"We know that older people have higher heating costs, and that's precisely why we kept our promise to protect winter fuel payments and are permanently increasing the cold weather payments to 25."