An open letter to the PM (From Witney Gazette)

George did you not read that David Cameron claims the £5.30 (pittance) a week hightlights the governments and I quote "commitment to older people"? He also said "I know these are difficult times...but my promise to pensioners is that we are on your side." Well the frozen pensioners know all about his promises.....they mean nothing. He promised to end the discrimination suffered by the frozen pension policy if he won the election. He has done nothing of course...in fact the words "frozen pensions" has not figured in any of his speeches since he became Prime Minister. We have all paid into the NI fund and we all should be treated the same, where we live is irrelevant. My letter to him about how he squares this discrimination with the Equality Act 2010 was ignored of course. I read today that the poor lamb has had a tough month since the budget, but he said "We've increased the basic state pension by £5.30 a week". How he can say that without choking on his words beats me! I'll tell you Mr Cameron about "tough" it's "tough" on those who have endured a frozen pension for year after year. A pension that by rights should be £107 a week but a retiree who moved to a frozen country in 1981 will be getting £29.60 a week. Your comments about being on the side of pensioners makes those of us who are suffering the theft of our rightful annual uprating very angry and makes you sound like a hypocrite. Another of your favourite sayings is "If you do the right thing and work hard you will be rewarded". Well we worked hard, we did the right thing, we paid our pension contributions, now you "do the right thing" and pay us what we are owed.

This situation just shows how much those who are there to look after the interests of the people that they represent are failing in their job. You, Prime Minister, are there for all British citizens, both home and abroad and to turn a blind eye to a situation like this shows a total lack of understanding on your part. I would hope that you have the courage to answer in this forum or will you just ignore it like the many letters that you must have had regarding this policy. Of course , you could get one of your minions to do it "The Prime Minister says ....." if you don't have the moral fibre to do it yourself. This is affordable as the letter says and it is purely the will of MP's that sends pensioners into poverty who have done no wrong. Why do you continue to punish these honest citizens ? Please do not listen to turncoat Steve Webb , your Pensions Minister, who said "I'm absolutely committed to making sure that generations yet to retire have a decent state pension as a foundation and a pension of their own". This will not happen with a frozen pension policy will it ? And he has the audacity to say this after raising an EDM in 2008 to end the freezing and is now in a position to do just that - even defends the policy by making absurd excuses. Presumably you agree with him and see no wrong here. Do have a word with Her Majesty when next you meet and ask her opinion.
But you know her answer don't you ?

As a patriotic Welshman I admire the Queen enormously - she works damned hard - she's a straight talker - she's determined - she's loyal to her country and to her subjects - she utters no falsehoods - and she's the complete opposite of all her Governments!!
For sixty years she's ruled the UK well - can the same be said for her Parliaments? I don't think so!!
For the same period her Governments have shamelessly discriminated against 4% of her retired subjects. Those are the UK citizens who have had the nerve to retire to a country where their pension is frozen for the rest of their lives.
If that 4% had - for example only - moved to the USA instead of Canada, then their pension would be increased every year. But retired UK expat pensioners in Canada get nothing in the way of a yearly raise, instead - when you take inflation into account - they actually get a cut!!
That's the thanks for paying into a system that doesn't tell you its rules until you're ready to draw cash from it.
Can you imagine a private insurance company taking contributions off you for 30 or so years, and then - when you're ready to retire - saying that if you move to a certain country they won't pay part of your pension?? I believe that'd be called discrimination - well that's what the UK government is doing right now to 4% of retired citizens!
Of course Her Majesty can't be drawn into this shameful situation, but I can't imagine for one moment the she'd approve of it either.
May she reign for many, many more years, but I sincerely and fervently hope she tells her Prime Minister that as far as her "frozen" pensioners are concerned - enough is enough!!

Janeybird, Morgeo and Bagochips have really laid out the hypocritical posturing of this and previous governments on the frozen pensions issue. There is no legal, moral, financial or administrative justification for continuing this discrimination.
What is exasperating is that so few of the MPs that represent the people - including UK pensioners who live abroad - are aware of the facts and happily quote all manner of - shall we be charitable and say - 'untruths'.
Equally when one writes to Cameron, Duncan Smith or Pensions Minister Webb they either do not reply or produce some steriotype electronic response from a "Communications Unit" which does not even address the points raised...and yet our taxes, and yes (Mr Hague please note) frozen pensioners are assessable for UK tax purposes pay their salaries.
Excellent letter Mr. Morley...does anyone know if Cameron can actually read, though?

After reading the open letter to David Cameron, I would throw down an open challenge to him to Justify frozen pensions. (No platitudes please) Do you have the courage, and moral fibre to do this Mr.Cameron? or will you continue to hide behind your "script writers"?