The government has confirmed almost 2,200 British expats with frozen state pensions have returned to the UK during the past year.
Pensions minister Lord Freud revealed the figure in a written answer to a question posed by Lord Browne of Belmont in Parliament.
Freud went on to disclose that around 550,000 British expats have frozen state pensions, while about another 640,000 living in Europe and countries with welfare agreements with the UK have their payments linked to annual cost of living increases.
“There were 2190 recipients of the UK state pension who were resident overseas with non-uprated state pensions on 31 May 2015, and who were resident in the UK on 31 May 2016,” said Freud.
Brexit uncertainty
Thousands of pensioners retiring to Commonwealth countries such as Canada, Australia, India, the African continent and many parts of the Caribbean miss out on state pension increases, but those living in European Union nations, the United States, Jamaica, Israel and the Philippines receive the full amount.
Even though someone could have paid into the welfare system their whole life, the rules only allow them a reduced state pension because they pick one country over another when retiring.
Brexit uncertainty has left pensioners living across the EU concerned that they may lose index-linking – also called uprating – when Britain finally leaves Europe.
Their pensions are reciprocal under EU rules, but this may be scrapped on Brexit.
Intransigent government policy
Although campaigners are hopeful that the government will extend uprating to all state pensioners living overseas, their hopes seem futile.
“We have a very clear position on this policy – which has remained consistent for around 70 years: the UK state pension is payable worldwide but is only uprated abroad where we have a legal requirement to do so or a reciprocal agreement is in place. There are no plans to review this.” Said a Department of Work and Pensions spokesman.
Payments will increase for expats living in reciprocal countries by 2.5% from April 2017 – to £159.55 a week for the flat rate pension or £122.30 for the old state pension.
In other countries, the payment remains stuck at the rate paid on the first day the state pension was received.
The British unique practice of unfairly freezing the UK State pensions of 550,000 of its pensioners is an amoral outrage. Britain is the only OECD nation with this unfair discriminatory practice for which it ought to be suspended from the Commonwealth. The reason for this suggestion being that the Commonwealth Charter claims, “we are implacably opposed to all forms of discrimination”; notwithstanding which the British Government disregards this clause and continues to discriminate against 550,000 of its pensioners. Disgraceful!.
Three poınts ıf ı may.
1. The pensıon is not actually reduced – the frozen pensıoner receives their basic entitlement and it remains at the same level.
2. The rate of payment will remain at the level at which it is first paid in the frozen host country. This is not necessarily the same as the first day it was received as it could have been in payment and subject to indexation before emigration.
3. I think the International Consortium of British Pensioners would not accept that “hopes are futile”. If they were then what would be the point of continuing the campaign for parity world wide? We will not give up!
If you click on the link in the article “reciprocal countries” it goes to a list that shows countries with reciprocal social security agreements with UK. Amongst them is Canada. Yet the UK state pension is frozen for life for its recipients in Canada. Why????
The agreement UK had with Canada was limited in its scope, and didn’t include uprating the UK state pension in Canada. Canada negotiated with UK and changed its social security system, so that the changes would put it into line with what UK required.
When Canada had made the necessary changes (to enable uprating of UK state pensions to take place) UK changed its mind and totally withdrew from negotiations, and refused future ones, leaving Canada holding the baby.
So when UK says it’s not at fault that its own pensioners are being impoverished in other countries (particularly Canada) you’ll know differently!!