Cost of living squeeze for benefits and state pension

Money Box

BBC

Business

4.2 • 804 Ratings

🗓️ 12 February 2022

⏱️ 30 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In April, benefits and the state pension will rise by just over three per cent. That is less than half the increase in prices which is predicted by the Bank of England. So people on benefits will be able buy less even with their increased benefits. One campaigner said it’s not so much choosing between heating and eating - more a choice between freezing or starving. What’s it like for people on the front line of the cost of living crisis and should taxpayers even be paying for a rise at all? Last week we learned that the price of gas to heat our homes was going to soar – but most people are protected by the price cap. That’s not the case for around 800,000 households which get heating from Heat Networks - or communal heating - where multiple homes, usually flats, are heated by one boiler. The residents pay for their gas through management agents or housing associations. And because these are commercial contracts they are not capped like for domestic fuel. Their bills look set to triple or even quadruple. We find out what help, if any, is out there for them. For nearly half a million UK pensioners living abroad the increase in their state pension will be even less than the 3.1% mentioned earlier. It will in fact be zero. In about 50 countries the pension is increased with inflation as it is in the UK. But in the rest of the world including Australia, Canada, and New Zealand as well as India and most African and Caribbean countries, the state pension is frozen at the rate it is first paid abroad. A petition to change this was launched in January but it still has barely half the signatures needed to get a Government response. Presenter: Paul Lewis Reporter: Chris Flynn Producer: Dan Whitworth Researcher: Marianna Brain Editor: Emma Rippon

Transcript

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0:00.0	You are about to listen to a BBC podcast and I'd like to tell you a bit about what goes into making one.
0:06.5	I'm Sadata Sese, an assistant commissioner of podcasts for BBC Sounds.
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0:16.0	relationships, identity, comedy, even one that mixes poetry, music and inner city life.
0:22.4	So one day I'll be helping host develop their ideas, the next fact-checking, a feature,
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0:33.6	So if you like this podcast, check out some others on BBC Sounds.
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0:44.1	Before you get stuck into this episode, I want to tell you about some changes we're making to where you can find this podcast.
0:50.8	From next month, you can hear Moneybox 28 days before anyone else for free on BBC Sounds.
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1:13.5	subscribe, and you'll get brand new episodes in the My Sound section of the app when they're ready.
1:18.6	I told you it was easy. Now, let's get back to the podcast. Easy indeed and free. Hello,
1:25.6	welcome to this Moneybox podcast. Hundreds of thousands of people living in flats
1:30.0	face steep rises in their heating costs because the price of their gas is not capped. Half a million
1:35.9	UK pensioners who live abroad have their pensions frozen when they leave the UK. We hear live
1:41.4	from Canada about the effect it has on them. But first, in April, benefits
1:46.5	paid to 23 million people will rise by just over 3%. That's less than half the increase in
1:52.5	prices, which is predicted by the Bank of England. In other words, people on benefits will be
	...

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