In October 2000, Tony Blair's government awarded pensioners paltry rises ranging from 46p for women to £1.07 for men. Now the extra £50 awarded in the budget for winter fuel allowance is being flaunted as a good deal. It is nothing more than an insult.
As pensioners, in January 2007, we paid £377.16 for 100 litres of domestic heating oil. This February, we paid £553.88 for the same quantity, an increase of £176.72. We did of course have other deliveries between January 07 and February 08, so the to
tal extra paid for heating oil in the year is £316.88. So much for the £50.00.
Unlike much of the working population who are able to shut off their heating whilst out during the day, pensioners require heating 24 hours a day, and those of us who are less mobile feel the cold badly. More and more pensioners simply cannot afford to keep themselves warm. UK pensions are among the poorest in Europe. Irish and Norwegian pensioners get 30 per cent more than we do, and other countries which also are much better provided for are Italy, France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Denmark. Only Greece and Spain have lesser pensions than the UK and their winters of course are much milder than ours.
None of these countries is going to spend £79 billion on a new generation of weapons of mass destruction as the Brown government has decided to do, whilst neglecting the care of its pensioners, many of whom fought in the Second World War and helped to build the welfare state. Prospects of ever seeing a UK Government caring enough to provide adequately for its pensioners look remote.
JOHN S JAPPY, Moy Bridge, Muir of Ord, Ross & Cromarty
The full article contains 300 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
