The UK Government's decision to introduce means-tested cuts to the winter fuel allowance for pensioners may be a sign of things to come, writes Tom McPhail in the Telegraph. The country is facing a significant financial challenge in funding retirements due to demographics. The share of GDP spent on healthcare, state pension, and adult social care is set to rise from 15% to over 25% in the next 50 years and the Government's current solution of high-volume, low-value immigration is not sustainable in the long term, says McPhail, the director of public affairs at financial consultancy The Lang Cat. Another alternative is to reverse the declining birth rate trend by providing tax breaks to mothers, for example, rather than “doing everything we can to discourage our young adults from parenthood.”
