The soon to be former State Pensions Triple Lock

The architect of the Triple Lock was Coalition Pensions Minister Steve Webb, a Liberal Democrat, in that generally otherwise appalling government which condemned the Lib Dems to many years of political oblivion.

It was a surprisingly progressive policy, oddly at times credited to George Osborne! It’s aim was to try to redress the fact that the UK state pension was far too low and many pensioners were living in poverty, unless they had additional sources of income. It was Liberalism in action, although it was clouded in Nick Clegg’s stupid about turn on Tuition Fees – don’t get me started on that debacle!!!

I guess the Tories only supported it reluctantly, as it was in no way a Conservative approach to poverty. That would be to ignore it!

Burnham seems to have turned it into a Double Lock with a vague promise to assess whether it keeps pace with wages every now and again. It’s probably what a Tory government would do, or have actually done, if they weren’t so concerned about the age profile of their own voters being 65+.

The comfortably off have pretty much always opposed the Triple Lock on the basis they don’t need the extra state pension and I include here some people who consider themselves progressive too. Keep repeating that the Triple Lock is unaffordable and eventually you’ll get many people repeating it, although not the less well off, of course.

Yes, I get the affordability issue but then again things that benefit the poor/less well off have never been affordable and they never will be. I also take the view that comfortably well off people seeking to reduce things that the poorest benefit from will usually be code for we want our taxes cutting.

Now to give Burnham some credit he says he wants to use what’s hypothetically saved from the Triple Lock to tackle our care crisis. I hope he means it too.

The Tories made us the most taxed we’ve been for generations, yet our public services are on their knees due to the 2007 financial crash, Brexit and Covid with austerity still very much alive and kicking us daily. Will Burnham’s move to a Double Lock on state pensions work? Will it create trouble for him with the ever growing ranks of pensioners? Will our state pensions slide back again over the years? Remember even after quite a few years of the Triple Lock our state pensions are still much lower than in many developed counties.

So let’s celebrate the work of Steve Webb, who saw poverty, far too much of it, within pensioners and did something positive about it. That he’s no longer in the House of Commons is a detriment to progressive politics. But at least the comfortably off now have something to celebrate, you might say…………...

 

Family Sayings

When in 1969 I went to Ormonde Drive Secondary Modern School (now Maghull High School) on Merseyside I became friendly with Tad (Antony-Tony) Jarrett* and subsequently got to know him and his Mum (Joyce) and Dad (Ken) very well indeed. Sadly, all 3 have now passed on.

 

Tad Jarrett (left) with another Ormonde Drive SMS chum Andrew Beattie

They hailed from the Peterborough area and, like myself**, they’d ended up in Maghull due to Ken’s job; he was an engineer. They lived in Manor House Close, a distinctive group of houses built, I understand, for the employees of GEC. Joyce was a secretary*** to Maghull Town Council and she was often seen cycling around Maghull – late 1960’s through to the 1990’s.

My reason for talking about all this is because of the sayings that family had for many a situation or item. I’ve probably forgotten many of their sayings but every now and again a situation will pop up and I’ll remember one. Here’s a few:-

Jippo – That’s what they called gravy – It seemingly has maritime connections as a slang word

Eating Irons – for cutlery

Left footer/Right footer – reference to being Catholic or Protestant – Interestingly, the family weren’t religious at all as far as I know.

The family were, it seems, quite opposed to swearing so instead of saying ‘sh1t’ when something went wrong they’d sing a little ditty ‘Shine your buttons with Brasso it’s only three ha’pence a tin, you can buy it knock from Woolies but I doubt if they’ve got any in’

Likewise, instead of saying ‘Feck’ they’d say ‘Four cakes and a bun’

Maybe because we both hailed from differing parts of England the Jarrett family sayings both fascinated and, at the time, confused me. Funny how they pop back into my mind randomly after all these years because something has happened to trigger one. Even odder that I can be found using them myself.

* Tragically, Tad died @1990 in his early 30’s

** My Dad worked for Thomas Cook the now defunct travel agency. We hailed from the Notts coalfield and came to Maghull when I was 10 via a stay of 4 years in Rochdale.

*** It was indeed odd when I was elected to Maghull Town Council in 1985 for one of the staff, who were there to assist me, being a best friend’s mother.

 

Good things can come from social media & some 

fascinating (to me) Notts mining history

Social media has many faults and many bad actors using it for negative/appalling purposes but my experience of it has been quite positive, indeed, it has connected me with new Kirkby-In-Ashfield friends and helped me better understand my family’s coal mining history.

Back around 5 or so years ago I placed an old family photo on the Kirkby Living Memory FB page and the consequences were very positive as people chipped in with their knowledge of my Dad’s side of the family; the Robertson’s of Hampden Street. One response turned into a friendship and that, in turn, created another friendship with former Kirkby residents Geoff Chapman and David Amos. Like me, they left Kirkby some years ago but unlike me they are both still Nottinghamshire residents. They are now firm friends and without FB I would never have got to know them.

David Amos is a history and heritage expert particularly with regard to coal mining in the East Midlands and he has helped me research the industry which up until the previous generation of my family, before mine, was a way of life that no longer exists at all.

Geoff Chapman has a direct connection with my Dad’s family as his family knew my grandma’s sister’s family Kath & Len Harrison and their 3 sons (Rex, David & Melvyn), once of Victoria Road, Kirkby. Geoff and I also share a love of cricket.

I had a grandad at Kirkby (Summit) Colliery (Walter Calladine), an Uncle at Bentinck Colliery (Henry Wright) and another Uncle at Sherwood Colliery (Doug Depledge), plus I had an uncle who was a driver at Kirkby Loco Shed (Ken Calladine).

I now travel back to Kirkby at least once a year, usually when Notts County Cricket Club has a home fixture, as cricket has always been been a big thing amongst the men in my family too. My Dad, George, knew Joe Hardstaff Jr and my Mum, Sheila, went to school in Kirkby with one of Harold Larwood’s daughters.

With David Amos advice I have now read quite a number of books about coal mining in Notts and the wider East Midlands not least the ones David has written himself (Coal Mining in the East Midlands – David Amos & Natalie Braber & Coal in the Blood – Natalie Braber & David Amos). Most recently I’ve read this book -

 

It’s a fascinating read about miner’s housing in various communities within Notts. it was funded by the National Lottery and is at part of the Minor2Major project’s website - https://miner2major.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/ & FB page https://www.facebook.com/miner2majorproject

Even though my family left our Kirkby home (14 Orchard Road) withme aged 6 in 1964 I find that the town and it’s heritage a continuing source of interest. That Kirkby has it’s own Heritage Centre, which I’ve visited a number of times, is brilliant. I guess I’m a Kirkby lad and always will be.