Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Over-50s face cost of living nightmare in 2022
NEARLY 10 million older people haven’t got enough savings to weather the cost of living crisis due next year.
Four in 10 over-50s have less than £3,000 put aside – and 5.7 million of those have only £1,500, with 2.2 million having no back-up at all. Yet they will face higher energy bills, rising prices and the loss of the pension triple lock. Around 1.3 million working OAPs will also have to pay National Insurance contributions for the first time.
Retired footwear manager Elaine Yates fears what little money she has set aside will be wiped out by rising prices.
The 72-year-old, who is a fulltime carer for husband Michael, 76, said: “We don’t have debts. We don’t have holidays. I don’t even have a credit card.
“But my big fear is how we will fork out for unexpected repairs with the cost of living going through the roof.”
Elaine, of Northampton, added: “We feel abandoned. When it comes to this Government,
we’re second-class citizens.” Shadow work and pensions secretary Jonathan Ashworth said: “Two million pensioners are in poverty. And millions of older people have little or no savings.”
More than half of those aged 50 to 54 fall below the £3,000 savings threshold. And 2.5 million people in their fifties have less than half that amount to fall back on. A third of over85s have less than £3,000 and nearly 100,000 have no savings.
Labour wants VAT on domestic energy bills scrapped for six months to help them.
Caroline Abrahams of Age UK said: “This is a scary time to be a pensioner if a cooker or boiler goes wrong.”