Pressure mounts on minister to drop pension cut

The anti-Islam PVV has called on social affairs minister Henk Kamp to drop plans to cut the pensions of elderly people who share their home with adult children.


At Saturday’s party congress, the ruling Christian Democrats also called for the plan to be dropped.
During that meeting, Sybrand van Haersma Buma, who heads the CDA group of MPs, said the measure would be a punishment for adult children who take on the care of their elderly parents.
‘We want to stimulate that, not punish it,’ the MP said.
Single pensioners are entitled to a basic pension of 70% of the minimum wage a month, while couples each get 50%.
Household definition
But Kamp wants to change the definition of a household to include single pensioners living with an adult child.
The state pension for a single person is currently € 1,034.38 a month, plus holiday pay.
The government is also considering reducing welfare benefits for parents who share their home with a child who works.

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