2-Dec-23: The Telegraph: ‘Aussies do it better’: why Jeremy Hunt is casting an envious eye Down Under
25-Nov-23: The Express: We will always back British pensioners, says Tory Minister Mel Stride
Any person reading this should be pushing back and letting Mr Stride know that he omitted the half a million UK pensioners who are living in countries that do not have reciprocal social security agreements (what a joke since FOI request 595 in 2013 exposed this myth – the UK Government could, at the stroke of a pen, have all UK pensioners receive the same State Pension regardless. These are the ways you can get hold of Mel Stride:
Email: secretaryofstate@dwp.gov.uk
Phone (Direct): +44 (0) 203 267 5002
Switchboard +44 (0) 207 340 4000
Fax +44 (0) 203 267 5086
. Address: Caxton House, 6-12 Tothill Street, London, SW1H 9DA
Twitter (X): @MeljStride
Website: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-work-pensions
If you want some text – try this:
“As you are aware the Canadian Government have written to you and Kemi Badenoch in April 2023 this year, followed by a communication from Minister Seamus O’Regan, suggesting how you could assist 127,000 UK Pensioners who reside in Canada and unfreeze their state pensions by entering into a social security agreement that includes indexation. The Canadian Government has positioned this issue as a priority for resolution as a close ally for well over 100 years. The Canadian Government and all UK pensioners who reside in Canada, some of which are veterans and have served in the UK armed forces are frustrated that the UK has provided indexation to the USA, 38 years ago. This needs to be a high on your agenda to achieve a solution before the April 2024 indexation event.”
(2) Mel Stride on X: “With the Triple Lock we’re raising the State Pension by up to £900, one of the biggest ever cash boosts. Under Labour pensions rose by just 75p in one year. Pensioner poverty was through the roof. The @Conservatives will always back British pensioners. https://t.co/VstRJuARjH” / X (twitter.com) …. scroll down to see our multiple replies.
Please – do this today…..Thank you
22-Nov-23: APPG: Chancellor challenged on the frozen pensions policy in House of Commons questions on the Autumn Budget
21-Nov-23: The Express: Pensioners urge Rishi Sunak to act as hundreds of thousands to miss out on state pension boost next year
18-Nov-23: The Express: Tens of thousands of state pensioners can’t afford heating as they miss out on triple lock
18-Nov-23: Birmingham Live: £41,000 warning issued to 500,000 UK households ahead of April
17-Nov-23: The Express: Time to end the ‘frozen pensions scandal’ affecting 480,000 retired Britons abroad
17-Nov-23: GB News: British pensioners stuck in state pension ‘postcode lottery’ urge Government to ‘end this injustice’
16-Nov-23: Teeside Live: DWP and HMRC work together with 1,000s owed around £5,000 due to State Pension underpayment errors
6-Nov-23: The Telegraph: ‘If I was ‘‘contracted out’’ of the extra state pension, can I top up my contributions now?’
2-Nov-23: The Express: ‘I’ve missed out on £23,000 state pension since moving abroad’
2-Nov-23: The Telegraph: ‘I went back to work in my 80s because my frozen pension became worthless’
Board Member Peter Sanguinetti believes he has received nearly £25,000 less in his State Pension than he would have received had he stayed in the UK. Is this fair? You decide……
31-Oct-23: Department of Work and Pensions (DWP): Survey of public perceptions of fraud, error and debt
31-Oct-23: Department of Work and Pensions (DWP): Fraud and Error in Welfare Benefits, 2016 to 2022: British Social Attitudes survey
31-Oct-23: Mail On-Line: How many NI qualifying years are enough to get a full state pension?
30-Oct-23: The Telegraph: The countries with the best pensions – and where Britain ranks
18-Oct-23: House of Lords (Hansard): State Pensions: Canada Free Trade Agreement
26-Oct-23: The Telegraph: Thought you had no state pension? Think again
11-Sep-23: The Telegraph: Rishi Sunak refuses to commit to pension ‘triple lock’ for election manifesto
Have a Telegraph Subscription? Join in the conversation by clicking on this link – https://tinyurl.com/yc8rajzc
7-Sep-23: Birmingham Live: DWP State Pension payments set for huge 2024 rise in new inflation ‘blip’
7-Sep-23: Daily Record: New calls to unfreeze half a million State Pensions and give people current payment rates
7-Sep-23: Financial Times: UK Treasury braced for 8% rise in pensions because of triple lock
6-Sep-23: Martin Lewis: Pension Credit:
Pension Credit is offered to OAPs in the UK whose income is less than £220pw for a Single OAP and £320pw for a Pensioner Couple. The UK Government cannot even give it away, and yet there are thousands of OAPs who could claim it but don’t – often because they are too proud to claim it. Meanwhile, there are pensioners living in Canada, a country where the annual State Pension increase is not received, and their State Pension is £20pw or less and yet, there are 127,000 UK pensioners living in Canada, many of whom HAVE to put their pride aside and accept handouts from the Canadian Government. How much longer is the Canadian Government going to sit on their hands and allow this to happen? How much longer? Over to you, Mr Trudeau…..
31-Aug-23: This is Money (Daily Mail): Rolling chaos of state pension top-ups system condemned by savers
Your hard earned money disappears down a black hole. There must be thousands of pounds slushing around in an HMRC account not allocated. If I or any other pensioner owed the taxman money we would be hounded day and night. I rang DWP in mid-July to ask what is the current situation. The DWP very politely told me to call back at the end of September.”
– Susan Ryan, after spending £820 to top-up her State Pension
The delay is not acceptable and getting contact with DWP is not easy.”
– A retired business owner, after spending £4,120 in January to top up his pension
It would take six to eight weeks to be actioned”.
– A former civil servant who spent £4,890 in February says every time she rang up she was told tracing her money or adding it to her record would take this long.
30-Aug-23: This is Money (Daily Mail): Should we keep the triple lock? Your views on the state pension debate
No! Cutting back on the State Pension will lead Britain to financial disaster”,
– LEE TUCKER, 67, Truro
30-Aug-23: The Express: DWP responds to petition calling for £16,900 a year state pension
Petition: Increase the state pension to equal 35 hours a week at the National Living Wage
This petition has accumulated over 34,000 signatures – Have you signed it yet? If not, clink the link above, and add your signature…..
29-Aug-23: GB News: Millions of Britons do not have any pension savings at all
“Pension pain warning as retirees with average pot have just a quarter of recommended amount“
29-Aug-23: This is Money (Daily Mail): How do I get the most income out of my pensions in retirement?
29-Aug-23: FT Adviser: Half of people claiming new state pension receive full amount
3,057,000 people receiving the new state pension in November 2022, 649,000 women, and 881,000 men received less than £185.15.
This compares with almost three quarters (74 per cent) of people who are claiming the old basic state pension who receive at least the full rate.
29-Aug-23: The Express: State pension could rise to £11,500 a year as Rishi Sunak ‘sticks to triple lock pledge’
29-Aug-23: Daily Record: Rising cost of State Pension could see UK Government ‘break or at least adjust’ Triple Lock
14-Aug-23: GB News: Half a million pensioners are estimated to miss out on an uprated UK state pension due to where they live.
26-Jul-23: Parliament.co.uk: Give 500,000 UK overseas State Pensioners with frozen pensions parity
26-Jul-23: YourMoney: Retirees need £2k more than state pension to meet minimum living standards
Retirees need an annual income of £12,800 to achieve a minimum living standard, defined as covering essential spending plus a week’s holiday in the UK but no car, according to the Pension and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA). However, assuming retirees receive a full state pension of £10,600 per year, this leaves them with a shortfall of £2,200.
How many Frozen Pensioners receive an annual income of £12,800 per year?
26-Jul-23: LancsLive: DWP State Pension warning as thousands losing £5,000 a year in cash freeze
“Just to remind ourselves, members of the Windrush generation were invited to live and work in the UK to help run Britain, and they devoted their working lives to this country. It is manifestly wrong to punish them so severely simply because they have returned to their countries of birth for retirement.”
– Lord Davies of Brixton
25-Jul-23: International Adviser: Uprating frozen UK state pensions estimated to cost £4.6bn
| Year | Estimated cost (£ millions) |
| 2023-24* | £860 |
| 2024-25 | £940 |
| 2025-26 | £930 |
| 2026-27 | £930 |
| 2027-28 | £930 |
| Total (2023-28) | £4,590 |
* In February 2019, the 2023-24 financial year, the “Estimated cost” was £640 million. This has been revised upwards by the DWP by some £220 million….
25-Jul-23: PattayaMail (Thailand): New campaign to end frozen UK state pensions in Thailand
Most political pundits say that there is a zero chance of the Conservative government changing its mind, though there is more support in the Labour party for a rectification of the discriminatory practice. Separately, there is now legislation to allow long-term expats to vote in general elections in UK, although the numbers are small in electoral terms and spread over many constituencies.
Expats can join the new group by contacting End Frozen Pensions – Thailand Branch on Facebook.
8-Jul-23: Financial Times: This could be the best £800 investment you’ll ever make
30-Jun-23: DWP: Request your personal information from the Department for Work and Pensions
29-Jun-23: The Telegraph: Why Britain can’t ditch triple locked pensions – despite the alarming cost
29-Jun-23: The Telegraph: Triple lock will be protected by Tories in next election
Mel Stride said the policy will “almost certainly” be in the party’s manifesto and that it has a “particular duty” to shield the elderly.”
I think we do have a particular duty to pensioners. They are in a position where it is less easy for them to step back into the labour market. So I do think it’s particularly important that we look after them. I’m confident that it [the annual State Pension Triple Lock increase] will be. It’s not for me to write the manifesto on air, but I think it almost certainly will be.”
-
- – Mel Stride (Current Pensions Secretary)
Source: Royal London
Labour has also repeatedly pledged to keep the policy and it is expected to feature in Sir Keir Starmer’s manifesto when he takes on the Tories.
23-Jun-23: Financial Times: Is a healthy retirement only for the rich?
12-Jun-23: This is Money (Daily Mail): State pension top-ups deadline pushed back AGAIN as savers jam phones
People who have worked hard all their lives deserve to receive their state pension entitlement, and filling gaps in National Insurance records can make a real difference. With the deadline extended, there is no immediate rush for people to complete gaps in their record and they will have more time to spread the cost.”
– Victoria Atkins, MP – Financial Secretary to the Treasury
I am pleased to see so many people taking steps to review their state pension, which is why we have extended the deadline for customers to add extra years to their National Insurance record. This extension means thousands more people will have time to check their entitlement, and in many cases, increase the amount they receive when they retire.”
– Laura Trott, MP – Pensions Minister
26-May-23: The Express: State pension ‘riddled with errors’ – thousands urged to check if they are due back £400
Essentially, you should always start from the assumption that the sum of money you get may be incorrect — that’s how bad it is. My advice would be — if you’re not sure, challenge it.” – Sir Steve Webb, former Pensions Minister who was architect of the current State Pension system
20-May-23: The Express: British OAPs in Canada face poverty sparking calls for action
I find it incredible that the UK Government is allowing this archaic policy to continue, punishing their pensioners for moving to some countries but not others. The UK is lucky that Canada has stepped up and provided support where it can. But it should not be just down to us; a country should treat its pensioners fairly, with dignity and respect. Canada is ready to end this injustice. It is time for the UK Government to work with us.”
– Matt Jener0ux, MP for Edmonton Riverbend, Alberta
19-May-23: Inyourarea: State pension to rise by £700 with triple lock guarantee
And HOW much will your State Pension go up? Not happy about that? Join the CABP NOW and help fight for State Pension parity
19-May-23: The Express: Britain’s pensioners ‘worrying themselves sick’ over state pension
Imagine how UK pensioners living in countries, like Canada, where the UK State Pension is frozen? a staggering 97 percent of Express readers do not think the state pension is sufficient.
18-May-23: The Express: Thousands of state pensioners due back pay worth £11,500 as underpayments hit £630million
Are you one of the (mostly women) pensioners who is currently underpaid??? If so, contact the CABP by clicking here.
16-May-23: Inyourarea: DWP benefits you can no longer claim after reaching state pension age – full list
14-May-23: Pension and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA): Retirement Living Standards
Image: Courtesy PLSA
14-May-23: The Express: Pension ‘mission impossible’ as savers told they need £530k for comfortable retirement
2-May-23: Mirror Online: Millions of state pensioners underpaid by £530million last year – are you one of them?
24-April-23: Collingwood Today: British pension freeze led Collingwood woman to Ottawa protest
22-April-23: The Times: How to unlock a £350 billion pension bonanza to boost UK plc
22-April-23: The Telegraph: Labour defends pensions tax raid as a ‘tough choice’ but worth it
10-April-23: Almond Financial: Retirement Shortfall Report: How much do you need to enjoy retirement?
5-April-23: Pensions Expert: UK workers face more than £115,000 retirement income deficit
This is based on a retiree’s sole income from the State Pension. At today’s exchange rate, this equates to close to $189,000, and represents the average amount that this retiree would not receive in State Pension increases, according to Almond Financial
27-Mar-23: BPiA: Update This petition is now over 143,000 signatures, let’s take it to 150,000 – If you have not signed it yet, please sign now!
24-Mar-23: CTV News: British ex-pats push for pension thaw as ‘unfair’ freeze hurts Canadian pocketbooks
98-year-old Anne Puckridge and CABP Director/ICBP Chairwoman Sheila Telford express their frustration to CTV News about ‘frozen’ pensions
22-Mar-23: DWP: DWP Social Media Accounts
Ever thought of venting your spleen with the Department of Work and Pensions? Well. now is your chance. Click the link above, choose your Social Media platform and get going….just remember – be polite. You can be as firm as you like, but please remain polite at all times……
13-Mar-23: Hunt warned of ‘uproar’ from millions if he betrays state pension triple lock pledge
11-Mar-23: The Guardian: UK state pensions: later deadline for NI top-ups that can mean £55,000 extra
10-Mar-23: This is Money (Daily Mail): Crunch deadline to buy state pension top-ups pushed back to July, after mounting anger from savers over phone meltdown at DWP and HMRC
We’ve listened to concerned members of the public and have acted.”
– Victoria Atkins, MP – Financial Secretary to the Treasury
I have been trying for some weeks to get hold of someone on the telephone and having gone through the quite laborious automated phone system for the Future Pensions Centre, I permanently just sit in the queue or get cut off. Getting all the way through and then suddenly getting an engaged tone is so frustrating! I am delighted to hear that the DWP have acknowledged the delays in this important service and the concerns that people have to make sure their pensions are fully funded. An extension is a really sensible option and I look forward to making contact with a DWP representative soon.”
– Mrs Murtague, a 54-year-old retired bank worker from North Yorkshire
I’ve already topped up my NI contributions. This took forever and contained much inaccurate information which, despite me being an actuary, was hard to decipher, As I already have 38 years contributions, I don’t understand if I really need to pay for two missing years, and if in fact I’ve already overpaid in terms of top ups. I’ve telephoned many times, got through a few times, and fairly quickly been cut off. I’ve submitted two formal complaints. The extension is a start, but probably not nearly long enough judging by my experience of making top ups in the past. There are practical issues such as obtaining a reference number to accompany the payment; things may have changed but nevertheless some guidance on how to actually make the top up would be useful.”
– Nicola Foote, 65, a retired actuary from the north of England
It is pure negligence for ministers to risk hundreds of thousands of pensioners being left without their full state pension through no fault of their own. Ministers must listen to Liberal Democrats once more with an urgent two year extension to the deadline and a fully resourced Future Pension Centre helpline to ensure everyone affected can access the advice they need.”
– Wendy Chamberlain, MP – Liberal Democrat Work and Pensions spokeswoman
10-Mar-23: Daily Record: State Pension payments of up to £203 each week for nearly 3m older people from next month
- 12.6 million older people across the country [UK] will receive an increase of 10.1% in April
- 9.7 million currently receiving Basic State Pension payments of up to £141.85 per week
- 2.9 million getting New State Pension payments, which are worth up to £185.15 each week
- 1.8 million older people receiving less than £100 per week from their State Pension
10-Mar-23: Cambridge News: Six DWP State Pension changes that are due within weeks as payments rise
- State Pension Triple Lock which means an:
- Increase in New State Pensions
- Increase in Basic State Pension
- Increase in Over 80’s Pensions
- Increase in Married Women’s Pension
- Increase in Additional State Pension
How many of these are you entitled to?
9-Mar-23: Financial Times: Deadline extended for boosting UK state pension
9-Mar-23: iNews: I’m still working at 70 – My UK pension is frozen because I live in Canada
I never dreamt in a million years that I’d still be working at 70 in order to live. If you’ve paid into your pension – like I have done for 23 years – what difference does it make where you live? I live a simple live, I never travel, I don’t go out. But the cost of everything has gone crazy since Covid. I fear for my future.”
– Barbara Reynolds, 70, Nova Scotia
7-Mar-23: This is Money (Daily Mail): Crunch deadline to buy state pension top-ups pushed back to 31 July
‘We’ve listened to concerned members of the public and have acted.’
– Victoria Atkins, Financial Secretary to the Treasury
5-Mar-23: Wellington Weekly News: OPINION: The UK state pension is far too low
If you have not signed this UK Parliament petition, can you please do so? If the Government (or Opposition) were to accede to this request for a minimum State Pension of over £400 pw, maybe they could uprate our State Pension at the same time…..
Petition: Increase State Pensions to £416.80 per week & lower the Retirement Age to 60 for All
So far, over 36,000 have signed this petition so far….
5-Mar-23: iNews: Former pensions minister Steve Webb reveals how you can avoid going broke in retirement
…and which of these categories do you fall into?
4-Mar-23: The Sun: Full list of free cash, discounts and freebies you can get on state pension worth up to £6,400
How many of these do you get?
Pension Credit (up to £3,500)
National Insurance cut for those working after they have reached State Retirement Age (up to £2,000)
Winter Fuel Payment plus Pensioner Cost of Living payment (up to £600)
Cold Weather Payment – £25
Free bus pass
Discounted rail fare – £76
Free NHS dental treatment
Free TV Licence – £159
Free prescriptions and eye test – £30
Discounted days out and cinema tickets – £20
None, right? Thought so….
2-Mar-23: Daily Record: Surge in demand to top-up State Pension could see deadline extended for some people next month
2-Mar-23: This is Money: More than 600,000 people paying to boost their state pensions
Do you have any gaps in your NI Record?
28-Feb-23: The Express: State pensioners to receive ‘biggest ever cash increase’
27-Feb-23: IFA Magazine: Only an average of 123,000 people per year make state pension top ups despite looming deadline
Under normal rules, it is only possible to fill gaps in an NI record up to six years after the year in question, but people have until 5 April 2023 to go back an extra ten years. This is due to a special concession that for a limited period people can fill historic gaps in their NI record all the way back to 2006/07.
27-Feb-23: Wales Online: Martin Lewis warning after state pension blow leaves woman ‘staggered’
If you have not retired yet, and you are looking at this page before 5th April 2023 – check your National Insurance Contributions, and top up if you have less than 35 years’ worth of contributions. Currently, you can go back to 2005/6
25-Feb-23: Daily Express: WW2 veteran stuck on just £72.50 a week state pension after moving to live near family
On June 17, 2012, I had this from the DWP, ‘I am sorry you have not received the leaflet you have requested for the past 11 years. To reduce costs the Department has ceased the printing of many leaflets’.”
– Anne Puckrudge, Calgary
24-Feb-23: Daily Express: Furious campaign against freeze on pensions as 60,000 call for change
24-Feb-23: Daily Express: 500,000 pensioners to miss out on 10.1% state pension boost – ‘already struggling!’
23-Feb-23: Daily Record: New State Pension age review due to be published before May could trigger change to Triple Lock
21-Feb-23: The Independent: Martin Lewis issues warning to Britons boosting state pension with national insurance payments
19-Feb-23: Sunday Mirror: Nearly 500,000 Brits overseas face poverty after pension increases frozen
18-Feb-23: Daily Express: State pension warning as window is ‘closing’ to top up National Insurance contributions
17-Feb-23: Daily Express: State pension payments to rise in April with triple lock back – but how much will you get?
We’ll get the same as we got last year…and the year before…..and the year before that…..and that is 0.0%
17-Feb-23: Daily Express: State pension alert: Britons could miss out on £5,500 a year boost
15-Feb-23: Daily Record: State Pension increase from April could mean half a million more people in retirement will pay tax
Older people on the Full New State Pension will receive £10,600.20 in the 2023/24 financial year.”
Sadly, not many of us fall into this category – why? Because our State Pension is frozen at the level first received, that’s why…..
15-Feb-23: Daily Record: New State Pension payments providing up to £185 each month to 2.9m older people
You can currently buy National Insurance credits to plug gaps going back to 2006, however, from the start of the new financial year on April 6, this window closes, and you can only go back six tax years.
14-Feb-23: The Express: WW2 veteran, 98, hasn’t seen state pension rise in 22 years after moving closer to family
14-Feb-23: This Is Money (Daily Mail): State pension top-ups: DWP phone lines ‘jammed’ ahead of April deadline
Given the impending deadline, it is vital that DWP either boosts the capacity of its helplines as a matter of urgency or extends the April deadline.”
– Steve Webb, former Pensions Minister
9-Feb-23: The Express: ‘Indefensible!’: Pensioners join forces to stop 500,000 people receiving ‘poverty pension’
8-Feb-23: iNews: What happens to my pension when I die?
Regardless of which type of pension you have, always keep any paperwork sent to you about your pension, so that your loved ones are able to contact the correct provider on your passing,”
– Zoe Dagless, a senior financial planner at investment management company Vanguard.
8-Feb-23: Daily Record: New State Pension payment delay warning for people reaching retirement age
8-Feb-23: Irish Examiner: Irish who worked in UK urged to claim years before pension concession ends
7-Feb-23: Parksville Qualicum Beach News: Courtenay-Alberni MP urges Canada to negotiate end to UK pensioners cost-of-living index freeze
7-Feb-23: This is Money (Daily Mail): The £11,000 state pension divide: That’s how much more younger pensioners receive on average over a 20-year retirement than older ones
7-Feb-23: The Independent: How much will the UK state pension increase in 2023?
31-Jan-23: The Daily Record: New State Pension petition calling for £416 weekly payment for everyone over 60 due official response
21-Jan-23: Government Actuary’s Department: The draft Social Security Benefits Up-rating Order 2023
14-Jan-23: The Express: ‘Caught in two systems’ Frozen pensioners ‘can’t’ return to UK as they are ‘destitute’
They can’t afford to come back to the UK, some of these are really destitute people. People could come back to the UK and throw themselves on the mercy of social services, costing the taxpayer. But the fact is they can’t actually afford it. They can’t afford to pack up and come back. So they’re caught between two systems. If they did come back, they’d get their fully uprated pension and have the NHS at their beck and call, they’d be housed and looked after.
– Sheila Telford, CABP Director
13-Jan-23: The Telegraph: Revealed: the size of pension needed for a ‘comfortable’ retirement
10-Jan-23: Financial Times: ‘High-earning men face a state pension shortfall’
9-Jan-23: Money Marketing: Deadline for state pension top-ups closes in April
Last chance to “buy-back” years prior to 2006 (if you are on the New State Pension”
2-Jan-23: The Sun – How to check if you’re owed £6,900 in state pension back-payment in 2023£860
