Young Iain Duncan Smith should pick his battles with care When the winter fuel allowance was introduced, back in 2000/1, I was notified through the post that I would be receiving it. I assumed it had been misdirected and phoned the council to explain that I didn't need it or feel it was intended for me. They explained there was no mechanism for taking it back. A few years later, when I was made the Government's Voice of Older People, I discovered there was a public dialogue going on and it was mooted that those of us who didn't need it could give the money to charity. This I did, along with many others. And I wrote about it, too. Iain Duncan Smith was not yet old enough to be involved. So he probably missed it. This time around, many of us are simply heaving a collective "been there, done that" sigh, recognising an old argument being reheated for the sake of stirring things up. So, again and definitively, let me state that I and many others believe the winter heating allowance should be means-tested. Until then, we will go on giving it to charity. The bus pass, however, is something else entirely: it is a reward society gives us simply for being old and it applies to each of us. All the old people I know cherish it almost as part of their identity, a medal proudly worn for services over a long life. Rather than having always had it so good, as is the current myth, many older people endured the war, bombing, rationing, austerity and the struggle for economic recovery in the post-war years. Some of us have made good and have houses and a bit in the bank, but we share the memories and attitudes over the decades with others of our generation. We are, for the most part, tackling being old with resilience and spirit. And the bus pass is our shared commonality. We won't give it up without a fight. What's more, the social case for the bus pass is a strong one. Without it, many of us would use our cars, adding to pollution and congestion. There's the health bonus: old people take little exercise and need it most. The walk to and from the bus stop may be their only regular outing. And what's more, buses offer the sort of social interaction the old desperately need. Too many of them complain of not seeing anyone for day after day. As for the television licence, it is surely the usual trade deal offered by businesses to long-time customers, and you do have to wait until 75 before you get the perk. The AA has recently made me a Gold Card holder with benefits attached. It's sound commercial practice. IDS can pick up his bus pass next April. What he does with his fuel allowance is down to his own conscience. But when the time comes, with 11 million pensioners ready to vote, the bus pass debate could well be this generation's Poll Tax.