THE government is encouraging everyone to save for their old age through the new stakeholder pensions.

It makes you wonder why people should bother - they aren't given the incentive.

Many old people who scrimped and saved to give themselves a decent retirement income seem to be worse off than the wastrels who enjoyed themselves blowing their lot.

Those who were careful and put cash aside are now taxed on non-state benefit pension, can't claim any benefits and have to pay all their own bills. They are consequently worse off in the long run.

Another grievance I read this week came from a 50-year-old single store manager who had worked all her life to bring up two children, and took home pay of just over £1,000 a month.

One of her part-time staff, because she had two children, got almost as much as she does because of benefits.

Call that fair? I don't.

These examples don't give anyone the impetus to save for their future.