UK State Pensions - The Big Freeze!
Who Will Champion the Injustice?
By ROBERT O'CONNOR
VANCOUVER - On a recent visit to Yellow Point Lodge on Vancouver Island, I bumped into a British expatriate and his wife, both born in the United Kingdom. The gentleman, born in 1910, and his gracious wife in 1914.
In 1982 he at the age of 72, and she at age 68, decided to immigrate to Canada. As soon as their feet touched her majesty's soil in Canada, the British government, because of their archaic rules, froze both their UK pensions and for life!
Today, some 24 years later, they still receive the exact same amount that they did the day they arrived in Canada, some two and a half decades ago.
As a matter of interest the mathematics of their pensions looks something like this: He on a Class A pension receives £118 per month, and his wife on a Class B pension receives £71 per month. This amount is paid to them for 49 years of contributions that he made while they lived and worked in Great Britain.
The UK government's rules clearly stipulate that if a British citizen who is entitled to a state pension leaves Great Britain and resides in such countries as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, or South Africa, that immediately upon arrival in any of these commonwealth countries, their pensions are frozen for life.
Moving to other countries does not inflict this penalty. If, for example, they had moved to let's say Germany, then this 96-year old war veteran would today be receiving about £4,470 per year and his wife about £2,600 per year. Added together they would be receiving a total UK annualized state pensions of over £7,000 per year.
However, due to this geographical discrimination, this 96-year-old gentleman and his 92-year-old life-long spouse have not received one red penny in excess of what they first received when they first arrived in this British Commonwealth country - Canada, a difference of £2,530 per year (well over $5,000 Canadian per year). An injustice that does not make for common sense.
So you say, what is being done about this tragic injustice? Much I might answer, and that much is being championed by a great non-profit Canadian organization by the name of Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners (CABP).
This society has at its helm (in British Columbia) a Manchester man by the name of Bernard Jackson, who along with a dedicated board of directors are determined to succeed in having this economic injustice overturned.
I firmly believe that CABP will succeed in having these ridiculous rules changed through legal channels (politicians in Britain do not seem to give a damn).
If you are from the United Kingdom, or have ever worked in the UK, membership in this great organization is a must, and at $20 per year a bargain. To join, call (604) 683-3445, or visit British Columbia's CABP website at: www.britishpensions.bc.ca, or write to CABP, P.O. Box 2224, Vancouver, BC V6B 3W2, you will be made most welcome.
In my next article on British State Pension rights I will address the intricacies of eligibility to receive a minimum state pension (or a maximum one), your rights to pay back voluntary contributions (and at the very best rates), and then pay forward each year to your retirement, for women age 60, and for men age 65.
Robert O'Connor is a British expatriate and a specialist in Canadian and UK State Benefits. He can be reached by e-mail at roconnor@telus.net, or call (604) 682-8087.
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