Comments on: 10 Downing Street Twitters While UK Pensioners Freeze http://www.otherbb.com/2008/08/10-downing-street-twitters-while-uk-pensioners-freeze.html Canadian views on the online business world Wed, 25 Jan 2012 17:13:26 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Michael Thompson http://www.otherbb.com/2008/08/10-downing-street-twitters-while-uk-pensioners-freeze.html/comment-page-1#comment-878 Michael Thompson Sat, 03 Jan 2009 17:30:02 +0000 http://www.strategicmarketingmontreal.ca/otherbb/?p=613#comment-878 I wonder how many UK pensioners living abroad, are among those who in 1979 voted for the very same Thatcherite government in the first place who severed the state pensions link with national average wages in 1980 all those years ago, and who had other income enough to move abroad, leaving their poorer counterparts to suffer the anguish of a dimished state pension todate ? And I also wonder how many of these same pensioners living abroad merely voted Tory in 1980 because their parents were also Tory voters, but that these pensionbers who voted Tory in 1980, had no ida of what Margaret Thatcher had in store for their contributary state pension that was linked to earnings or inflation by the 1974 Labour Government ? I wonder how many UK pensioners living abroad, are among those who in 1979 voted for the very same Thatcherite government in the first place who severed the state pensions link with national average wages in 1980 all those years ago, and who had other income enough to move abroad, leaving their poorer counterparts to suffer the anguish of a dimished state pension todate ?

And I also wonder how many of these same pensioners living abroad merely voted Tory in 1980 because their parents were also Tory voters, but that these pensionbers who voted Tory in 1980, had no ida of what Margaret Thatcher had in store for their contributary state pension that was linked to earnings or inflation by the 1974 Labour Government ?

]]> By: Michael Thompson http://www.otherbb.com/2008/08/10-downing-street-twitters-while-uk-pensioners-freeze.html/comment-page-1#comment-876 Michael Thompson Fri, 02 Jan 2009 17:15:50 +0000 http://www.strategicmarketingmontreal.ca/otherbb/?p=613#comment-876 Barry, What makes matters much worse is not just the national apathy on this issue from both richer pensioners with other income, from the general public, from the British media, and from the the two major political parties in this country. It is that the money is there, with this Government sitting on a National Insurance "surplus" of around £40 billion, which is expected to be 74.1 billion by 2012. And also that the Government's Pension Credit means test system is costing tax payers 10 times more than the restoration of the earnings link. At 60 last year, 2008, and having been campaigning for the elderly generations in this country for 20 years, what I dont know about this issue could be put on a pin head. To think that our war veterans and younger pensioners are means tested for extra money on a £90 odd quid a week state pension makes me puke, when MP's themselves are sitting pretty thank you, and still we British largely do nothing. We get what we deserve in this country, but our pensioners do not. Barry, What makes matters much worse is not just the national apathy on this issue from both richer pensioners with other income, from the general public, from the British media, and from the the two major political parties in this country.

It is that the money is there, with this Government sitting on a National Insurance “surplus” of around £40 billion, which is expected to be 74.1 billion by 2012.

And also that the Government’s Pension Credit means test system is costing tax payers 10 times more than the restoration of the earnings link.

At 60 last year, 2008, and having been campaigning for the elderly generations in this country for 20 years, what I dont know about this issue could be put on a pin head.

To think that our war veterans and younger pensioners are means tested for extra money on a £90 odd quid a week state pension makes me puke, when MP’s themselves are sitting pretty thank you, and still we British largely do nothing.

We get what we deserve in this country, but our pensioners do not.

]]> By: Barry Welford http://www.otherbb.com/2008/08/10-downing-street-twitters-while-uk-pensioners-freeze.html/comment-page-1#comment-874 Barry Welford Thu, 01 Jan 2009 19:28:48 +0000 http://www.strategicmarketingmontreal.ca/otherbb/?p=613#comment-874 Michael, I got the information you sent and it certainly is extremely powerful. UK Pensioners as a whole are treated very much worse than pensioners in the rest of the EU. I found the Seniors Network website particularly useful on what is going on: http://www.seniorsnetwork.co.uk/pensions/ Michael, I got the information you sent and it certainly is extremely powerful. UK Pensioners as a whole are treated very much worse than pensioners in the rest of the EU. I found the Seniors Network website particularly useful on what is going on: http://www.seniorsnetwork.co.uk/pensions/

]]> By: Michael Thompson http://www.otherbb.com/2008/08/10-downing-street-twitters-while-uk-pensioners-freeze.html/comment-page-1#comment-872 Michael Thompson Thu, 01 Jan 2009 16:52:27 +0000 http://www.strategicmarketingmontreal.ca/otherbb/?p=613#comment-872 Barry Welford, if you can read this, contact me and I will send you some facts and figures the government don't want you to know. Regards Michael Barry Welford, if you can read this, contact me and I will send you some facts and figures the government don’t want you to know.

Regards
Michael

]]> By: Barry Welford http://www.otherbb.com/2008/08/10-downing-street-twitters-while-uk-pensioners-freeze.html/comment-page-1#comment-871 Barry Welford Thu, 01 Jan 2009 15:27:07 +0000 http://www.strategicmarketingmontreal.ca/otherbb/?p=613#comment-871 Thank you, Michael, for that contribution. It's an excellent point you are making. Thank you, Michael, for that contribution. It’s an excellent point you are making.

]]> By: Michael Thompson http://www.otherbb.com/2008/08/10-downing-street-twitters-while-uk-pensioners-freeze.html/comment-page-1#comment-870 Michael Thompson Thu, 01 Jan 2009 14:35:35 +0000 http://www.strategicmarketingmontreal.ca/otherbb/?p=613#comment-870 UK pensioners are continuing to live a nightmare existance on a state pension worth just 16 per cent of National Average wages because the state pension remains linked to inflation and not national average wages. This is because New Labour have not reversed Margaret Thatcher's 1980 pensions policy of breaking the link with earnings. New Labour have kept state pensions linked to the lower inflation rate at 10 times the cost to tax payers than restoring the link with earnings. There is no shortage of money to pay pensioners a decent state pension based on at least 50 years of working and paying contributions after the war and todate. But this isnt about cost, this is about right wing dogma, because since their general election victory in 1997, New Labour have embraced Thatcherism, 100 per cent. And that's the bottom line Michael Thompson Link-Age/Countrywide & member of The Devon Pensioners Action Forum. UK pensioners are continuing to live a nightmare existance on a state pension worth just 16 per cent of National Average wages because the state pension remains linked to inflation and not national average wages.

This is because New Labour have not reversed Margaret Thatcher’s 1980 pensions policy of breaking the link with earnings.

New Labour have kept state pensions linked to the lower inflation rate at 10 times the cost to tax payers than restoring the link with earnings.

There is no shortage of money to pay pensioners a decent state pension based on at least 50 years of working and paying contributions after the war and todate.

But this isnt about cost, this is about right wing dogma, because since their general election victory in 1997, New Labour have embraced Thatcherism, 100 per cent.

And that’s the bottom line

Michael Thompson
Link-Age/Countrywide & member of The Devon Pensioners Action Forum.

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