Elderly must bear cutbacks too

The recent CSO report which showed that older people prospered most during the boom, and have suffered least during the recession, is a welcome rebuff to the cottage industry that has built up in recent years which dedicates itself to scaremongering about the plight of the elderly.

At a time of savage increases in taxes and cuts to unemployment benefits for younger people, the elderly have been completely shielded and have seen no cuts to their pensions, free travel and other ridiculous benefits, such as free telephones and TV licences.

The only cut to elderly benefits in recent years was the cut to the winter fuel allowance, which reduced the duration of the payment introduced by Fianna Fáil, who thought for some reason that “winter” lasted from October until April. Even after this cut, recipients are getting just €2 less in total this year than they did in 2007 at the height of the boom, and yet groups representing the elderly reacted as if it was a Dickensian move.