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Comments on pensioners failing to apply for council tax rebates, as mentioned in the Daily Mail
In referring to pensioners applying (or not applying) for council tax rebates for which they are eligible, Nick Raynsford, a former local government minister, said:
'One of the big problems is the 24-page application form for the rebate.
It's too long and too complicated and is putting a lot of people off. There are some pensioners who still see it as applying for some sort of charity or benefit and they are too proud to do that.'
(words in quotes from the Daily Mail of 23 October 2005)
'Pride' or the complexity of the forms are the only reasons mentioned for failing to claim what may be due to the elderly. But they cannot apply for it without exposing themselves to the scrutiny of agents of the collective who will 'assess' their claim and perhaps, who knows, decide that they are not looking after themselves well enough or are losing their mental grip, so that they should be brought to the attention of qualified experts who will decide whether they should be allowed to go on living in their own homes, or whether they are past it and should be incarcerated (whether or not against their will) in a proper institutional environment? They may well, in many cases, have a very realistic fear and sense of prudence in keeping a low profile.
Human psychology being as it is, state support is purchased from the Welfare State at the cost of losing control over your own affairs, even your own body and your own mind.
Celia Green
November 2005
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