For nearly as long as Dennis has been back in the show, something has been annoying me. Perhaps it's only because there might be something I'm mssing so please let me know if I'm wrong here... but wouldn't Dennis be receiving his old age pension? Ever since he's been back, he's been flat broke. At first, he was homeless. I understand a financial scheme left him without a penny and this must have been after he split with Norma, leaving her at the altar. But even then, he was over 65. Surely he could have been housed in a council flat by Social Services?
Once he moved in with Rita, he was always broke and happy to let anyone else buy him drinks, etc. Now that he had a home address, surely his pension could be paid into a bank? He was going to take a job in Birmingham rather than sponge off Rita which then led to their declaration of love and subsequent wedding. Now, judging from the spoilers, he feels he should get a job to pay his own way. Again, I ask why? I know a pension isn't a lot of money but it's at least enough to contribute to paying his way, surely?
Do you only get a pension if you've had a job during your life? Surely, Dennis has had legitimate jobs now and then over the course of his life though we know he preferred scams and schemes. We have no way of knowing at this point. It doesn't work that way in Canada. The main "Old Age Pension" is something all citizens get though there's another government pension you can get if you have worked and contributed to a fund. Am I missing something?
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8 comments:
I'm looking forward to seeing the answer to this! Pension rules in the UK are very complex and there are plans to simplify them. Dennis probably wouldn't have paid enough contributions to qualify for a full pension. At 65, he would have needed around 40 years worth of contributions. Regardless of pensions,though, he's surely entitled to benefits of some kind.
... and just to show how complicated it is, here's the link! http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/help-if-you-have-little-or-no-pension
Ah, so you do have to have contributed through employment. What on earth do women who have stayed home and raised a family do? In Canada the main "old age pension" is funded by taxes. The "Canada Pension" is funded by employment contributions.
I too have often wondered why Dennis didn't have a pension. Surely he would have worked at some kind of job during the years but if not should be able to collect benefits. I read the Daily Mail online and it is rife with articles about people claiming benefits when they shouldn't so seems easy to obtain...lol.
I just finished trying to wade through the British pension system's website! And I thought Canada's was complicated! Britain has a whole series of alternatives, and like Canada they are currently phasing in changes, both to the age at which you can start collecting (They're raising it, of course!) and to the differences between men's and women's amounts, as well as to eligibility requirements. Women who stay at home with kids get credit for those years, on a complicated scale, and divorced women can get credit against their ex-husbands' pensions for the years they were married.
I think to receive a pension you have to have made regular NI contributions and I doubt Dennis Tanner with his ducking and diving life would have done so. Perhaps a good storyline to show this.
Whilst Denis will have had to have paid something to get a full state pension (Old Age pension) there is a scheme whereby a pension can be topped up to provide a minimum income following the state retirement age (currently 65 for men).
So in a word, yes, Dennis is eligible for some form of state support, regardless of NI contributions.
If nothing else, wouldn't he be eligible for some type of welfare? I suppose now that he's married, Rita's retirement and other income would off-set any type of benefits he might be eligible for merely by being destitute (never mind his age).
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