Seemingly trivial things that intrigue you

I mean I appreciate you’re trying to parody but that is basically what government policy has been since 2010, just in in a less extreme form.

Not dole, but you seem to be giving off an air of entitlement.

Would maternity units be charged on a per-visit basis?

Costly, having children in Ricktopia.

What's dUK in street/ganster/old folk talk?

if that’s putting you off having children you really shouldn’t have children.

I'm still not completely sure I see the causal link between cost of GP appointments to the nation, and boomers.

Your posts above clearly imply that you're not happy with your lot in life and that you want some of the benefits you feel the oldies have had. Sorry, but on the absence of you owning a time machine to go back and be a Boomer, that isn’t going to happen so you'll need to find another way to improve your lot.

You’re not stupid, FA, you can.

depends what end of the telescope you are looking.

i agree you should only have children you can afford but you can also not stop people having children, so you have to make them well off enough to have them 🤭

Boomers got lucky, but life isn't fair.

I think RC is being too timid. No point titting about with charges for GP appointments, just phase out the state pension. Everyone should be auto-enrolled onto a pension scheme of some sort anyway. Obviously transitional arrangements would be needed, but think state support should be limited to those who couldn't for whatever reason save for retirement.

That would seem to further tip the balance in favor of "boomers" though? I don't see anything particularly wrong with giving pensions as a universal benefit to all over x years, where the amount is basically enough to keep a roof over your head, food in the fridge but anything more than that requires some sort of private pension.

I'd also tie any rises in with public sector pay bands.

If you want you could change it that once your illness is in the “system” you don’t charge for appointments.

That may be true of me but that’s not true for the whole country is it?

That seems more reasonable. I’m not convinced there are that many hypochondriac Boomers than general population though. On my, fortunately very infrequent, trips to the GP the waiting room probably has significantly more working age patients than OAPs. My daughters have been to the GPs more than me in the last 5 years. My parents have to be seriously unwell or in pain before they will go and my mum won’t even take Paracetamol for a headache.

The whole NHS system needs a review with nothing being “off the table” and without those doing the review fearing accusations that they are looking to privatise / kill the NHS. Without that it will carry on being a money pit. I’ve said before that I think too much money is spent prolonging life (rather than dealing with issues that can actually be cured) but it is far too emotive if, for example, you have someone on life support at £500k a year to suggest that should be stopped.

I think where you’re going wrong is a) assuming all pensioners are well off, living in overly large houses with gold plated DB pensions and b) that they somehow deliberately fixed policy to suit themselves rather than being the lucky beneficiaries of decisions taken by others (who were probably a generation before them). Basing your view of oldies on your mother-in-law doesn’t seem a good tactic either, from your description she sounds like a right cow!