Letter: Overdue reform

If Iain Hall is receiving the state pension as a teacher's pension, he may have noticed another adverse aspect to his occupational pension.

My civil service pension, like his, is frozen. However, there has been a small increase in the state retirement pension and the tax on this is taken from the occupational pension.

The net effect is that the civil service pension actually pays me less this year than last. And this at a time when inflation is on the rise. So much for the fallacy of the "gold-plated, inflation-proofed public service pension".

GERRY LYNCH

Lanark Road

Juniper Green, Edinburgh