Just re-read my last sentence and, of course, Mick is right. When we paid into the pension scheme it was widely believed that we did so because it meant that we would all then get a state pension at the end. And we did/do, just saying that this is no longer sustainable and needs to change, particularly as the situation has changed quite a bit since most of our generations started work (when we expected to rely more on it for our retirement) and an increasing number now have company or private pensions.


Doubtless some would say that they would then rather not pay NI and source their own pensions or health care but that is always going to be a gamble as forecasting the economy is notoriously difficult. You live in a society so you have to have some form of social contract that includes paying taxes and NI. Going forward I think that the state pension will have to be means tested (but, as I posted earlier, not an all or nothing system) as this seems to me the only affordable solution.