For most of her working life, 64-year-old Gladys Adeyemi, a retired NHS nurse from Walsall, lived modestly, carefully putting money aside each month into her pension pot.
She did everything the government advised—planned for her future, sacrificed short-term luxuries, and believed that one day, her retirement would be secured. Today, she feels betrayed.
“I’ve worked for over 40 years in this country, in hospitals where I saw joy, pain, and death,” Gladys (pic) says, her voice trembling with disbelief.
“And now, when I’m supposed to rest, I hear that the government might be coming for my pension. It feels like a slap in the face.” Gladys is not alone.
Across Birmingham and the wider Midlands, anxiety is spreading rapidly over reports that HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is exploring changes to how pension contributions are taxed — a move that could cost many workers up to £500 a year. The changes, insiders suggest, could target salary sacrifice schemes, which allow employees to exchange part of their salary for pension contributions and enjoy reduced National Insurance payments.
These schemes are particularly popular among mid-level earners—teachers, social workers, small business owners, and civil servants—many of whom belong to the region’s vibrant African, Caribbean, and South Asian communities. Gladys says: “This isn’t a raid on pensions—it’s a raid on dignity.
“They call it reform. I call it robbing those who played by the rules.”
The proposed move is reportedly part of efforts by the government to recoup funds after reinstating universal Winter Fuel Payments, a flagship policy of Chancellor Rachel Reeves. While Reeves has not publicly endorsed specific pension tax reforms, speculation has been fuelled by a flurry of activity within HMRC. In Handsworth, Pauline Khan, a 52-year-old school administrator and single mother of two, echoes Gladys’s sentiments.
“We’re always the ones being squeezed—middle-income earners who never qualify for handouts but carry the heaviest loads. I’ve been paying into my pension since I was 22. If they touch that, what message are they sending to my children?”
According to David Foster, senior pension adviser at SafeNest Advisory, the implications could be far-reaching. “People think £500 a year isn’t much, but over 15 years of contributions, that’s £7,500 lost,” he explains.
“Add compounding investment returns and we’re looking at £10,000 or more over a working lifetime. More worryingly, it could discourage younger people, especially from minority backgrounds who are already underrepresented in pension saving, from contributing at all.”
In Dudley, Reverend Emmanuel Nwosu, a respected community leader at LightHouse Chapel, sees deeper consequences for communal responsibility. “In our culture, we don’t retire alone.
“We support relatives back home, sponsor youth education, fund church and mosque projects, and give back. Pensions help us do that. If you chip away at that, you're not just hurting one person—you’re weakening entire support systems.”
The government maintains that the reforms are not final and that a consultation process will take place before any decisions are made. A spokesperson for HMRC said: “We are committed to a fair and sustainable tax system that reflects modern economic realities.
“Discussions around pension taxation are ongoing, and no changes will be implemented without full consideration.” But for many, those assurances ring hollow.
“This is not about modern economics,” counters Gladys, sitting in her two-bedroom home surrounded by pictures of her grandchildren. “It’s about promises made and broken.”
People fear that their retirement dreams will be cut short. Others worry about how to advise their children who are just entering the workforce.
Some simply ask why pensions—the very symbol of long-term responsibility—have become the latest battleground for balancing the books. In a society that often demands financial foresight and personal sacrifice, there is something deeply unsettling about a system that moves the goalposts just when people are about to cross the finish line.
Gladys, looking out her living room window, sums it up with quiet determination. “We gave this country our strength. Now, we’re asking not for favours—but for fairness.”
