No to universal retirement: leave Hong Kong’s next generation their happiness

Legislators are urging the government to introduce a “universal retirement protection scheme” — a motion long on passion and short on reason, and no small matter. The four words “universal retirement” alone reveal the grandeur of the proposers’ ideals: if everyone could truly retire worry-free, no amount of public money would be too much. But in reality, there is no free lunch.

Where would the money come from?

This generation’s pensions paid by the next — a pyramid relay. Universal retirement protection means anyone reaching 65, no means test, rich or poor, gets a monthly pension. Where does the money come from? If from the treasury, the treasury will one day run dry; no matter — this generation’s pensions get paid by the next, the next generation’s by the one after, like the Foolish Old Man moving mountains without end. This “pyramid” scheme never collapses as long as someone keeps passing the baton.

Who sacrifices for the ideal?

The middle class pays more tax; the next generation foots the bill. For universal retirement to feed everyone, someone must pay: not the tycoons — however harsh the tax regime, their accountants, lawyers and advisers will shield their vast fortunes; the burden falls on professional middle-class homeowners, who will simply pay more tax. By the government’s own numbers, at least a quarter of Hong Kong’s population will be 65 or older by 2029 — meaning every worker will hand over more than a thousand dollars to a stranger elder before payday arrives.

Why oppose it?

Government handouts for old age only corrupt social values. Respecting elders is a virtue, but today’s elder-care problem is real — parents raise children through school, only for the grown children to scatter, sending neither money nor care home. That is a failure of family education, not of society. Children who cannot even honour their own parents’ upbringing should not ask the government to pay for elder care — it only corrupts social values. The young people entering the workforce in 2029 were born only yesterday; they cannot protest yet — and by the time they can, it may be too late. Better to see Hong Kong’s next generation stand on their own feet than sacrifice their chances for our retirement security. As the old Chinese saying goes: raise children against old age, store grain against famine — the “universal retirement protection scheme” is a ticking time bomb.

To understand the current retirement and MPF system, visit MPF fund comparison.