Working pensioners should pay NI to fund NHS says commission

LEVY: Recommendations to ease struggling health service

Pensioners who continue to work should pay national insurance to fund a £2.3 billion windfall for the NHS, an influential commission has recommended.

Straining social care services should receive the same amount but funded through a property tax, according to the group of peers, business leaders and policy experts.

Inheritance tax should be abolished and replaced with a lifetime limit for recipients of £125,000 before levies kick in and the money raised would fund a £10,000 payment for 25-year-olds to help them get on the property ladder, pay for education, set up a business and invest in pensions, the Resolution Foundation Intergenerational Commission said.

Executive chairman Lord Willetts, a Conservative former minister, admitted the recommendations in the report were “not easy or comfortable” but said many no longer believe Britain’s

“Our report shows how a new contract between generations can build a better and more unified Britain. LORD WILLETTS

young and old are being treated fairly.

He said: “Britain’s contract between generations lies at the heart of society. As families we provide for our children and parents at different times.

“We expect the state to support these natural instincts – but too often it is tilted in the opposite direction.

“Many people no longer believe that Britain is delivering on its obligations to young and old. But our commission shows how Britain can rise to this challenge.

“From an NHS levy to put healthcare on a firmer financial footing, to building more homes and a Citizen’s Inheritance to boost young people’s career and housing aspirations, our report shows how a new contract between generations can build a better and more unified Britain.”

The commission, which was chaired by the peer alongside Frances O’grady, TUC general secretary, and Carolyn Fairbairn, CBI director-general, called for an “NHS levy” funded by national insurance on the earnings of workers over the state pension age as well as on some occupational pension income.

It comes after reports that Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt is considering putting forward proposals echoing the recommendation.

Council tax should be abolished and a property tax introduced in its place that would include surcharges on second and empty homes but stamp duty would be halved to encourage people to move, under the report’s plan.