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Let's hope that Cameron finally sorts out this dogs' breakfast of a public workers' pension system while the rest of us are left swinging in the wind of market forces.

- Ted, London

"If they want a pension then buy one....". I pay at least 11% into my pension - I certainly don't get it for free! This problem is solely the fault of the Govt where the police are concerned; they could have created a pension fund, but chose not to, relying instead on contributions from current contributors to pay the pensions of retired officers. Doesn't take Einstein to work out that eventually it would cause problems does it???
I get sick & tired of hearing moans from people who don't actually know the facts about how I get my 'gold plated pension' for free. If only!!!

- Gw, ASHFORD

The media attacking public sector pensions misses the point.
The question is why are all the private sector final salary schemes closing?
No one had a problem when private sector final salary pensions were much more common than they are now.
When Gordon Brown was Chancellor he raided private sector final salary pensions by removing the tax relief on investments. this cost pension schemes .75-1% Per Annum and netted him in the first year £5 billion.
Pension funds rely on compounding. That single Act by Brown spelt the end of Final salary pension funds.
Public sector pensions tend to be schemes where the money taken from the employees is not invested.
In the early years of the Firefighters pension scheme the money that was taken for the pensions effectively subsidised the cost of the fire service to the public.
No doubt it is the same for the police pension scheme.
One of the reasons I work for the public sector is the pension scheme I signed up for. My long term finacial planning is based around this.
Current policy and politics seems to favour short term planning. Those who make the decisions are never around long enough to be held accountable for the results and ther is no incentive for policy makers to make long term strategic decisions.
Don't fall into the trap of having a go at public servants(unless they are MP's with a Platinum and Diamond plated pension!).
Look at why so many final salary pensions have failed.
One Answer BROWN destroyed them.

- Simon, london

'Just scrap the entire plan, make public sector staff pay into private pension schemes like the rest of us.'

It's tempting to lash out like this, but dumping people against their will into the likes of Equitable Life (say no more), Confederation Life (went bust), Scottish Widows (dubiously taken over by Lloyds: the result was announced before the votes could have been counted) &c, &c is punishment, not realism. Over 25 years, taking moderate and sensible advice, I've been shafted by all the above: fortunately, I didn't believe all their hype.

I strongly agree that we should take responsibility for our own savings, but the present structure is simply broken. In the private sector it's crazy that people move from pension fund to pension fund, with all the admin fees and costs, whenever they change jobs. And allowing companies to set up their own schemes is like putting Dracula in charge of the National Blood Service.

I'm sorry for most of these people, because they've simply done what the 'experts told them was the best thing to do.

- Mdj E10, london uk

Aligning public and private sector pensions is a long overdue, no-brainer. I heard a stat the other day from the taxpayers alliance I think (dont know if its true or not) that £1 in every £4 of council tax goes to pay for retirement benefits.

I also think that reforming final salary schemes is only one part of a wider set of reforms required to both central and local government. A central problem is that once you get the job youve made it, move up a grade each year, get your large holiday allowance, very little risk of redundancy, large pension at the end of it.. All very comfy. There is little incentive to input discretionary effort to differentiate yourself through performance. Taken collectively, the lack of output from this low performance culture costs a billions, hence the rationale for things like PFI (like it or loathe it).

In my view the public sector needs to move away from incentives to work there, and towards incentives to do well once you are there. As unpalatable as it may seem this may mean taking all or some of the money that would have gone to fund these pensions and bens, and use it for bonuses and promotions for high performers, and stop being afraid to get rid of those who dont perform.

- Nick, Clapham

How is it that teachers on huge salaries and six hour days for maximumum of 191 days a year. (now with an extra easy day off every week for marking)

Police Constables on £40k a year and retirement after three decades or less of gravy train riding. Let out during the last Thursday of the month to get their targeted number of convictions for the month.

Who can retire after 30 years of such simple office work of issuing fines or checking DNA samples of people long dead.

Are described as some of our lowest paid people?

Have they any idea how many hours a week, how few holidays and how many decades people in the private sector have to work for a pitance and pay so much of it to buy a pitance of a pension?

Then to be robbed of those pensions by their employers, insurance companies and or Gordon Brown!

Or any other Labour Prime Minister who sneeks into Downing Street for a few weeks just to steal pensions from the British productive and prudent sector!

- Barry, Wales

Why should those of us who actually generate wealth and are productive be constantly fleeced to pay unsustainable, and very often largely unearned, massive pensions to people who do not contribute anything much to the rest of us at all.

It is time for reality to hit the mollycoddled and undeserving public sector just as, thanks to Gordon Brown's wholesale theft from private pensions and destruction of our economy, it has already hit the rest of us.

Bob from Cheam, you are absolutely correct!!

- Matt, London, UK

What is urgently required is some leadership from within the Boardrooms. Top Executives have Golden Hellos, Golden Goodbyes and huge guaranteed pensions regardless of performance. They are critical of Public Sector Pensions but don't seem to be aware of their own snouts in the trough. It seems that there is a parallel universe for the Private Sector.

- R Wright, Acton England

Dear Bob Cheam,
Hit the nail on the head, they should all wake up and smell the coffee?.
If they want a pension then buy one, stop relying on others we can't afford it?.

- John L., Scarborough N.YKS. England. U.K.

Jk, London, good point. The last thing we need in the public sector is employees.

- Peace Maker, Battersea

About time! if the council workers feel that they are not being paid enough then let them do what we in the private sector do - get another job!

- Jk, London

Any Private Sector Pension which needs Taxpayer Support has a cap of around £26,000 a year - retrospective.

Any Taxpayer funded Pension, like those in Government, should have the very same cap put on immediately.

The many who are on large salaries are well able to provide their own pensions to supplement this cap.

- Cap, London

Bob of Cheam, I couldn't agree more, make it a level playing field where the more you put in (i.e. the harder you save) the more you get back rather than someone else paying for your pension, especially when they cannot afford to save for such a generous pension themselves.

- Steve, London

Bob I think you will find that most public sector workers do already pay into their pension fund. My husband certainly has to pay a minimum of 11% in so please don't get carried away with the idea that public sector workers are getting something you are not. And you had/have the choice whether to take a job in the public or private sector.

And don't forget that most of these people are people who care enough to help society; nurses, police, fire , teachers etc and generally tend to also be the lower paid.

- Jl, London

Bob(of Cheam)
I couldn't agree more. Those more than five years from retirement should be transferred in to private provision immediately. Poorly paid public sector workers should get a compensatory pay rise.

- Andrew Nicholls, Ely ,England

And now sit back and wait for the inevitable strikes, "working" to rule, losses to frontline services and general bleating about how hard it is to be a civil servant.

- Nobby Clark, Perth, the Scottish one

Just scrap the entire plan, make public sector staff pay into private pension schemes like the rest of us.

- Bob, Cheam

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