Interesting Article On Universal Pensions

[Froggee]

Some very valid points! No good news however - basically it seems it's far too late for us. Suspect the Australian/Singaporean schemes where individuals are forced to save for themselves should have been brought in a few decades ago but how on earth are the needed reforms going to be pushed through before it gets even more out of control?

Written by Dr Jim Walker on www.webb-site.com

Old Age Pension: Historical backdrop

"Between 1925 and now the UK, along with nearly every other European country, has made no attempt to set aside funds explicitly for old age pensions. These have been non-contributory entitlement schemes.

This is all very well as long as the contributions to National Insurance and general taxation from workers and private businesses are greater than the demands from the growing old age pensioner cohort. The UK and Europe, because of the ageing population, is fast reaching a point where, between pensions and social welfare entitlement programmes, the Ponzi scheme is being laid open. (A Ponzi scheme is where payments to earlier members of a project or fund are funded from the contributions of new members. It comes to a crashing end when there are fewer and fewer new entrants and more and more existing members looking to take money out). "

Government finances: Your money

"It is worth stating a simple truth at this point: the government is entirely financed by the private sector. Only private sector workers and companies pay taxes. Public sector workers’ net salaries (i.e., less the taxation which they pay) are entirely funded by private sector contributions (or, in some countries, borrowing). Public sector capital spending is also entirely funded by the private sector, either at home or abroad. Even government revenue from land sales – and who granted the government the right to own land in the first place? – is dependent on private sector purchase."

[South Lorne]

...I agree with Walker ...there is no public sector without private business enterprise clubbing together to set it up and pay for it through taxes ....