Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners Visit us at www.BritishPensions.com

Issue #2, 2018

Hostile legislation outflanksopportunity for pension increase

The UK Government in March outflanked the strategy devised by the All-Party Parliamentary Group

on Frozen British Pensions to achieve the annulment of the Statutory Instrument legislation that freezes our pensions each spring – a plan that had the support of four political parties in Westminster including Labour, as detailed on the front page of the last issue of JUSTICE.

The Government incorporated an additional clause into the Statutory Instrument, a clause to increase the allowance paid to caregivers. As there is no way to split or revoke a specific part of a Statutory Instrument, no MP could in good conscience veto the entire legislation as doing so would have denied increases to fulltime carers in Britain.

The International Consortium of British Pensioners plans to make a great deal of noise in the UK about this Government sting – this unjustifiable tying together of increases in benefits for one group (carers) with decreases in benefits for another group

(‘frozen’ pensioners) within one piece of undividable legislation. Just a few days ear-lier, Parliament had awarded upratings to every pensioner around the world for the financial year beginning April 6, 2018.

It was a frustrating outcome for all who worked hard to put everything in place so we could achieve pension

uprating for at least the current financial year. ICBP is now investigating ways to block the repetition ever again of such an incongruous maneuver.

We appreciate that many CABP members had asked friends in the UK to petition their local MP to support the eagerly anticipated annulment.

INSIDEChairman’s column . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Action in Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 & 5

New ICBP partner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

AGM Notice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Alberta Info Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Mailbag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Where’s Waldo Scarf Man?

For the answer, please see p .5 .

2 - JUSTICE #2, 2018

JUSTICE is published by:

CANADIAN ALLIANCE OF BRITISH PENSIONERS

National Office: 202–4800 Dundas Street West, Toronto, ON M9A 1B1Tel: 416-253-6402 • Toll free: 1-888-591-3964Email: info@britishpensions.comWeb: www.BritishPensions.com

OFFICE HOURS: Tuesday-Friday, 10 am to 2 pm (Eastern Time)

Editor: Rosalind Tosh • justice@britishpensions .com

Advertising: Malcolm Campbell malcolmcampbell@britishpensions .com

© Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners

LOCAL CONTACTSONTARIO:

GTA & Surround: Margaret Wells Tel: 905-450-9028 • Email: mawells@pathcom .com

Orillia/Barrie: Alan Llewellyn Tel: 705-329-0894 • Email: alwell04@yahoo .ca

Oshawa: George Morley Tel: 905-697-3783 • Email: morlege@gmail .com

Ottawa: Tony Bockman Tel: 613-627-9675 • Email: tony .bockman@primus .ca

Parry Sound-Muskoka: Peter Sanguinetti Tel: 705-477-2489 • Email: peter .sanguinetti7@gmail .com

Waterloo: Roy Godber Tel: 226-647-6069 • Email: rgodber@rogers .com

Windsor: Ian Spencer Tel: 519-739-0808 • Email: ispencer21067@gmail .com

ALBERTA: Sheila Telford Tel: 403-245-8541 • Email: sheilatelford@shaw .caMANITOBA: Geoff Davies Tel: 204-745-6727 • Email: digeoffdavies@mymts .net

NEW BRUNSWICK: Franklin Cardy Tel: 506-529-4280 • Email: fcardy@nb .sympatico .ca

NOVA SCOTIA: Michael Alford Tel: 902-835-9780 • Email: mjalford@bellaliant .net

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND: Stephen Lowe Tel: 902-963-4009 • Email: stephen .lowe@bellaliant .net

QUEBEC: Janice Taylor Tel: 514-674-0667 • Email: thejanicetaylor@gmail .com

BRITISH COLUMBIA:Greater Vancouver: David Currie Tel: 604-295-6335 • Email: davie53@telus .netGreater Victoria: Alan McFarlane Tel: 250-995-9356 • Email: alanmc@shaw .ca

Nanaimo: Ian Andexser Tel: 250-758-7594 • Email: ianandexser@gmail .com

Okanagan: Jean Amatt Tel: 205-549-6008 • Email:jean .amatt@gmail .com

Sooke Area: Fred Whittaker, Tel: 250-642-4968 • Email: seapeeps@telus .net

Surrey/WhiteRock: Sonya Bass Tel: 604-536-4853 • Email:sonyabass@shaw .ca

Elsewhere: Ian Andexser Tel: 250-758-7594 • Email: ianandexser@gmail .com

OTHER CANADIAN LOCATIONS & INTERNATIONAL: CABP Office: Tel: 416-253-6402 or 1-888-591-3964Email: info@britishpensions .com

Please note: All comments, information, articles, opinions and answers appearing in JUSTICE or provided by CABP or its volunteers are offered in good faith but are not intended to be a substitute for informed professional advice .

Editorial by Rosalind Tosh

Deadline for submissions to the next issue: 9 July 2018

A 1948 British Pathé news-reel shows the ‘Dominion Premiers’ posing with

King George VI in Buckingham Palace. The voice-over says the Commonwealth leaders are in London to discuss “the great-est problem facing the British Commonwealth” – a problem that is then identified as being “the excessive population in Britain.”

An Australian politician is shown offering the solution: Britain’s popu-lation “should be redistributed among the other countries of the British Commonwealth.” We see a map of the UK overlaid with the caption “94,000 Square Miles: 50 Million People”, followed by the combined maps of Canada, South Africa, Southern Rhodesia and Australia and the words “7½ Million Square Miles: 23 Million People”.

Even without the newsreel’s title – Should 20 Million Emigrate? – its message to the people of Britain is abundantly clear: Leave the UK. Go live in one of her “vast Dominions.” This message was to be repeated again and again in various formats throughout the next several decades.

It is no exaggeration to say that Britons were “seduced by government pro-paganda films in glorious technicolour” (BBC documentary Ten Pound Poms, 2008). The films depicted a bright, beckoning future for those who would answer the call – and who could resist such a call when it was sweetened with a fare of just £10 for those choosing Australia as their destination. (I still have such a ticket, one I did not use.)

Canada, meanwhile, had an ‘open door’ immigration policy strictly for people from the British Isles. The Canadian Government even provided pre-paid travel vouchers that could be reimbursed by the immigrant at their leisure. (This offer I did take advantage of.) As a result, for the next forty years, Britons would be the largest group of immigrants in Canada.

All this background to say that a statement made by SNP MP Mhairi Black in Westminster last fall resonated deeply with me.

Ms Black berated the UK Government for having manipulated many of today’s ‘frozen’ pensioners into moving overseas by offering them work and deals, and then, in their old age, applying the hidden sting in the tail: freezing their pensions.

“It is so mad,” she said, pointing to the clearest evidence that the Government knows an uprated pension is in fact their due: uprating is applied whenever they visit the UK.

Ms Black, vice chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Frozen British Pensions, ended her speech with a plea, “Please work with us to get it right.”

Amen to that.

JUSTICE #2, 2018 - 3

Consortium optimizes Commonwealth summit

Big plans that have been in the process of distillation over the course of several months are coming to fruition in the UK just as this issue of JUSTICE goes to press. The

International Consortium of British Pensioners will be making pension freezing highly visible during the Commonwealth Heads

of Government Meeting taking place in London April 16 to 20. ICBP has been working for months to develop initiatives

that might capitalize on the biennial gathering of powerful Commonwealth figures. The vast majority of frozen pensioners – 95 per cent – live in the Commonwealth, with 48 out of the 53 member countries being a victim of Britain’s freezing policy.

ICBP director John Duffy received official accreditation as a delegate to the summit as part of the Antigua and Barbuda contingent. He was determined to put into effect a number of planned publicity operations, aided by PHA, our media relations company. We look forward to reporting on these initiatives in the next issue.

ICBP and CABP lobbied hard for pension freezing to be raised by participants of every standing at the summit, during both formal and informal gatherings. We are grateful to those CABP members who also lobbied Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and others for this to happen.

Reminding Canada to reap our pension rights

When Canada’s Finance Minister Bill Morneau paid a low-profile visit to London in March to promote Canada’s economic partnership with the UK, we

launched what we hope became an avalanche of emails and tweets to his accounts by inviting online CABP members to add their voices to ours.

Our messages petitioned Minister Morneau to raise the unac-ceptable fiscal impact of pension freezing on Canada during all discussions relating to economic partnerships with Britain.

They reminded him that the effect of the UK’s pension freez-ing policy on Canada adds up to hundreds of millions of dollars every single year – and that the British Government has refused decades of requests by Canada for them to cease and desist.

Our messages also informed him that right now Canada has an optimum opportunity to achieve this goal at long last, given that the UK is very keen to strike economic and trade deals outside of Europe, notably with Canada.

You’re not getting the brush-offMembers who participated in the ‘avalanche’ exercise may have received a formulaic response from Minister Morneau’s office, basically saying that the pension freezing portfolio is the respon-sibility of another minister, Jean-Yves Duclos.

Do not be disheartened by what appears on the surface to be an ignoring of the point we were all making – that pension

freezing must be linked to trade talks with the UK. Behind the scenes, our messages have a deep impact. The fact is that the more often that Cabinet members and regular MPs hear this message, the greater precedence they will give to the issue and the more likely it is that action will indeed be taken.

Please continue to write to your Ottawa MP asking him or her to lobby their caucus and the Government to heal the damage to Canada caused by pension freezing in tandem with brokering any new economic agreement with the UK.

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Canada’s Bill Morneau promoting economic partnerships in London .

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A letter I sent out to members in January after receiving just three responses to an appeal for help garnered a lot of feedback, with messages expressing both censure and sup-

port. We welcome all your communications, the bouquets and the brickbats. We value your input, your suggestions and your views.

A number of people said that they had been offended by the letter. This is indeed regretted, as nothing could have been further from the intended impact. Our hope was to stimulate enough members into taking action during the critical period of time before the March tabling of legislation that would freeze pensions for another year, and before the April gathering of Commonwealth leaders in London (both of which you can read about in this issue). The goal was to have the weight of our membership visible behind our consortium’s efforts to turn these events into profitable opportunities.

Other members expressed revitalized energy and commitment, saying that they were ready to do more. Some included a list of potential businesses in their community where we can promote our association, and this has already resulted in at least one record month for new members joining our ranks.

While the effectiveness of the campaign in Britain relies a great deal on active support by those who can give it, the fact remains that every member of CABP is valued, regardless of their ability to participate. We understand that some do not have the resources necessary. Some no longer have personal contacts in the UK, and others do not have access to a computer, making it difficult to find information such as addresses or the names of current politicians.

As well, not everybody is adept at composing letters – perhaps myself included? I am delighted that a volunteer has stepped for-ward with a generous offer to help any CABP member with this very effective skill (please see Are you being served? on p.15). We know that letters from ‘frozen’ pensioners have a huge behind-the-scenes impact in Westminster.

Comings…CABP’s board has been very busy helping plan, organize and put into action various initiatives by the International Consortium of British Pensioners – and we are delighted that another pensioner group has now joined the consortium. The man at the helm of the British Caribbean Pensioners Association, John Duffy, is incredibly passionate about the work and this can only add to the energy and effectiveness of the global campaign.

…and goings After three years on our board of directors and a lot more years working with the BC group of volunteers, Bill Avery has retired from active duty with CABP. Bill also has served as treasurer to our consortium. We are grateful to him for his numerous contri-butions to the cause of pension justice and wish him all the very best in the future.

All of us still on the board are looking forward to meeting many of you at CABP’s AGM on June 9 in Ontario (please see the notice on p.7) and also in Alberta on June 23 (notice is on p.11).

Chairman’s Columnby Ian Andexser, CABP Chairman

CABP met with a Global Affairs Canada director in Ottawa in late March. Alain Gendron’s depart-

ment manages Canada’s diplomatic relations and encourages international trade. The conversation began with me underscoring the negative financial impact that Britain’s pension freezing policy has on Canada’s economy, an im-pact (estimated at $1 billion a year) that decades of diplomatic discussions have failed to remedy.

I put forward ways in which the Canadian Government might now achieve a resolution to the situation, including by tying pension uprating to their discussions around a new trade deal with the UK following Brexit.

I also referred to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting that was soon to take place in London and our hope that Prime Minister Trudeau would act at that time on CABP’s request that he discuss the issue there with leaders of the other 46 Commonwealth nations that are frozen, as well as with Britain’s Theresa May.

I left the meeting feeling optimistic that Mr Gendron would indeed formally brief the senior bureaucrats and Cabinet Ministers who would be participating in these significant events. Nevertheless, know-ing that ours is but one portfolio amongst many for the Canadian Government to juggle, I do urge CABP members to con-tinue lobbying their Ottawa MPs in order to keep the pressure on them to take action.

Canada-UK parliamentary groupI met also with a member of the Canada-United Kingdom Inter-Parliamentary Association, Edmonton-Riverbend MP Matt Jeneroux. Mr Jeneroux was extremely open to the idea of CABP mak-ing a presentation to the group’s members in Ottawa and said he would propose the idea at their next meeting.

We look forward to presenting them with a strong case that they can take up with the Canadian Government and also with their UK counterparts during joint meetings of the parliamentary association.

Our thanks to CABP member Chris Gowers for the introduc¬tion to Mr Jeneroux, his local MP.

Doors open in Ottawaby Stephen Willetts, CABP Director

JUSTICE #2, 2018 - 5

‘Scarf Man’ spotted everywhereIs Ian stalking Canada’s politicians?

Who was the guy in the red and black scarf and what was he going to ask? He had his hand up for hours!” These were the burning questions on viewers’ minds at the

finish of the televised Q&A session hosted by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Nanaimo, BC in February – we know this from postings on social media.

CABP Chairman Ian Andexser was highly visible onscreen throughout the two-hour event. Sometimes standing, some-times sitting, and always with an arm high in the air, vigorously attempting to have his question chosen by the PM from among the scores of others that were evidenced by the forest of raised hands in the room.

Ian’s valiant efforts met with no success that day, so he instead posed his two-pronged question in a letter to Mr Trudeau, detail-ing the effects of pension freezing on Canada and asking: Would the Prime Minister agree to raise pension freezing at the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London; and would he agree to meet with CABP to talk about the issue, as the Australian PM has done with our sister organization in Australia?

Roger Gale, Chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Frozen British Pensions, and Baroness Floella Benjamin also wrote to Mr Trudeau, pressing him on both points.

Conservative leader invited to raise issue in CommonsA three-and-a-half hour ‘meet-and-greet’ in Duncan, BC af-forded Ian 60 precious seconds with Andrew Scheer, Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition in Ottawa.

It was clear that Mr Scheer knew there is an issue with British pensions, but thought we didn’t get any pension at all because we live in Canada. Ian clarified the situation, handed over a package of information, and suggested Mr Scheer pose a question in the

House of Commons asking the Government what it proposes do-ing about the UK policy that costs Canada so dearly: $1 billion a year. Next day, Ian reiterated his points in a follow-up letter.

NDP double takeNDP Pensions Critic Scott Duvall was astonished to learn from Ian the extent to which pension freezing hurts Canada’s econo-my. Ian provided him with a package of informational material while Mr Duvall was in BC speaking about his private mem-ber’s bill on pensions (one that aims to put pensioners ahead of secured creditors in the wake of a company’s bankruptcy).

Similarly, NDP MP Sheila Malcolmson, Ian’s local representa-tive to Ottawa, voiced dismay on hearing about the financial impact during a two-years-in-the-making meeting with Ian in her constituency office.

Both MPs appeared open and sympathetic to his plea for their support in Canada’s House of Commons.

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A two-hour marathon with PM Justin Trudeau .

Fruitful seconds with Official Opposition leader Andrew Scheer .

Financial impact of pension freezing on Canada shocks Pensions Critic Scott Duvall and Nanaimo-Ladysmith MP Sheila Malcolmson .

6 - JUSTICE #2, 2018

The International Consortium of British Pensioners is delighted to welcome a brand new pensioners’ group to the vig-

orous campaign for pension justice: the British Caribbean Pensioners Association. BCPA is now a partner organization along with British Pensions in Australia and CABP.

BCPA was founded in July 2017 by ‘frozen’ British pensioner John Duffy, who lives in Antigua & Barbuda.

The Caribbean is a region of particular signifi-cance to our campaign, as a great number of people from the region participat-ed in the mass migration to the UK of the 50s and 60s. Today many wish to return to their home country; however pension freezing severely constricts their ability to do so.

In addition, the region illustrates very strikingly both the discrimination and total illogicality of the freezing policy. For example, pensioners living in the region’s French and Dutch dependencies receive annual uprates while those in the British dependencies do not. Pensioners in the US Virgin Islands are uprated, but not those in the British Virgin Islands. And on the 34-square-mile island of St. Martin/St. Maarten, pensioners living on the northern half of the tiny island get uprated every year while those on the southern half do not. The list goes on, with roughly 50 per cent of the region’s 30 territories being frozen while the other 50 per cent are uprated annually.

It is believed that a substantial number of pensioners who do return to the Caribbean af-ter a lifetime working in the UK never inform Britain of their departure. They literally cannot afford to be open about their circumstances because those who are open are financially penalized by having their pension frozen.

We are asking CABP members to please pass the word along to anyone they know in the Caribbean and point them to BCPA’s website – www.britishcaribbeanpensions.com – which emanates a distinctive Caribbean flavour, blending the serious nature of our cause with humourous pokes at the perpetrator of pension injustice: the UK Government.

Caribbean group energizes our campaign

John Duffy in Westminster with Dame Floella Benjamin during ICBP’s lobbying mission last fall .

Injustice incited John Duffy to take actionWhen John Duffy, founder of the British Caribbean Pensioners Association, went into semi-retirement in 2005 at the age of 57, he and his wife Lindsay left Brighton, headed to the Caribbean and made their home on the island of Antigua . John still needed to pay three more years of National Insurance contributions in order to become eligible for a full British State Pension at age 65 and so he set up a direct debit process

to accomplish this – indeed he actually over-contributed, paying in for the whole eight years .

It was not until he had been receiving that full pension for a number of years that he realized the amount never varied, never increasing in line with pensions in the UK . His enquiries to Britain soon revealed the shocking reason . After some research, he discovered that work was being done by pensioners around the world to persuade the UK Government to abolish its unjust,

discriminatory policy of freezing pensions in selected countries .

John reached out to the International Consortium of British Pensioners, to British Pensions in Australia and to CABP and then, last July, he founded a similar organization for pensioners like himself living in the Caribbean – an organization he anticipates will grow progressively as word spreads .

Last November, John jumped in with both feet, participating in ICBP’s lobbying mission in the UK . He promoted pension parity to MPs, to members of the House of Lords and to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Frozen British Pensions, and he met with the press . He has now joined ICBP’s board of directors and has committed to executing a number of campaign operations that will be covered in future issues of this magazine, including serving as an accredited delegate to the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting .

JUSTICE #2, 2018 - 7

WHEN: SATURDAY, 9 JUNE, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. • Registration opens at 1:00 p .m .

WHERE: George Ashe Library and Community Centre 470 Kingston Road West, PICKERING, ONTARIO, L1V 1A4

• FREE PARKING

AGENDA:

1 . Welcome and Introductions 2 . Approval of the Agenda 3 . Approval of the 2017 Minutes 4 . Chairman’s Report 5 . Presentation of 2017 Audited Statements 6 . Appointment of Auditor 7 . Board Reports 8 . Ratification of Actions and Decisions 9 . New business 10 . Adjournment

Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

✪ Financial Statements for the year ending December 31, 2017 will be available at the meeting or on request by contacting the registered office of the Corporation to obtain a copy free of charge at the registered office or by prepaid mail .

FOR MORE INFORMATION: 416-253-6402 or toll free 1-888-591-3964 Please note that it will not be necessary to elect directors at the AGM as the current board of directors was elected for a three-year term at the AGM held on June 18, 2016, and no names of any other persons wishing to be considered for election to the board have been received at the registered office of the Corporation.

A Private Member’s Bill on Overseas Electors successfully passed its second reading in the House of Commons on 23 February and is now moving on to the next stage of

legislative passage. When it becomes law, this bill will give ‘frozen’ pensioners

around the world a real voice in Britain by allowing them to cast their ballot in general elections.

“The Government remains committed to introducing ‘votes for life’ ahead of the next scheduled General Election in 2022,” said the statement issued by the Cabinet Office in March.

The complete statement can be viewed online at https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/200005

Votes for life coming soon for overseas Brits

8 - JUSTICE #2, 2018

There are 12 million UK state pensioners, all of

whom contributed similarly to the pension scheme via

compulsory National Insurance Contributions .

• Of the 12 million, just over

one million live outside the UK . •

Half of the pensioners living overseas receive the same

annual cost-of-living increases as those still living in the UK, while the other half does not – their pensions are frozen

simply because of where they have chosen to reside in

their retirement .•

Commonwealth nations and British overseas territories are

home to 98 per cent of “frozen” pensioners .

• There are 147,000 in Canada plus 247,000 expats who are heading towards pension age .

THE ISSUEAT A GLANCETHE ISSUEAT A GLANCE

Sign-ups grew by 50 per cent in January

Let’s make it happen again by Margaret Wells

Fifty percent more people joined CABP in the first month of 2018 than in the previous January, thanks to promotions by our local and provincial reps and by a number of supportive members who placed posters in multiple locations

in their communities. We had the pleasure of welcoming new recruits all across the country, from Vancouver Island to Prince Edward Island.

This happy state of affairs has not yet repeated itself, however, as recruitment numbers for February and March simply mirrored those of a year ago. I am opti-mistic that this will change as more members are inspired to pull out all the stops in communicating our message via posters and brochures placed in favourable loca-tions in their neighbourhoods.

We have provided a poster in this issue for you to clip out or print and then dis-play somewhere in your local area. I will happily supply more posters – just ask me! (mawells@pathcom.com)

Helping people discover CABP is an act of kindness, a benefit to current and future pensioners, a good deed that will pay off – literally – when our campaign achieves its goal.

Names across the nationI am delighted to note that the list of ‘Local Contacts’ on p.2 of JUSTICE is grow-ing as more people across Canada step forward to help our pension cause.

The Ontario listing now includes Roy Godber in Waterloo, whom I mentioned in the last issue, and Peter Sanguinetti of the Parry Sound-Muskoka area. Peter has been spreading the CABP word in his area after discovering that local township administra-tors are often asked to witness Life Certificates for ‘frozen’ pensioners like himself.

In Manitoba, Geoff Davies has generously agreed to be a local contact in that province. Thank you, Geoff. We really look forward to working with you.

In Quebec, Janice Taylor has taken over the reins from Richard Yates, who re-cently stepped down after eight years of proactive service there. We are enormously grateful to Richard for his hands-on support and offer a warm welcome to Janice.

Now I am just waiting for someone in Saskatchewan – some generous individual – to step forward and agree to be a local contact in that province. If it’s you (and why not?), please contact me at mawells@pathcom.com.

CLIP AND DISPLAY

CLIP AND DISPLAY Please cut out or print the poster

on p.9 and pin it on a notice board in your community. Let us

know where you place it!

JUSTICE #2, 2018 - 9

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JUSTICE #2, 2018 - 11

SATURDAY, JUNE 23, 2018

2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Frank Wills Memorial Hall405 – 1st Street East

Next door to the RCMPCOCHRANE, AB, T4C 1C7

Come hear the latest news!CABP Chairman Ian Andexser

& ICBP Chairman Sheila Telford

NON-MEMBERS WELCOME

INFO: Smokey Seidel: smokey .seidel@gmail .com / 403-981-3936

Help publicize June meeting in southern Alberta

Please help get the word out to potential new CABP members living in or near CALGARY, CANMORE, COCHRANE or any other community in southern Alberta .

Local volunteer Smokey Seidel is standing by with promotional posters for displaying throughout the region, just waiting for your requests . Please get in touch with him at smokey .seidel@gmail .com / 403-981-3936 .

The one-hour public information meeting on June 23 is designed to attract new members to our cause and to bring current members up-to-date on pension news . There will be presentations by CABP Chairman Ian Andexser and ICBP’s Sheila Telford .

Smokey will also welcome offers of help with setting up and tearing down the meeting space in Cochrane (see address in ad, above), beginning at 1:00 p .m . on June 23 .

PUBLIC INFORMATION

MEETING

PUBLIC INFORMATION

MEETING

Know anyone in Cheshire or

Northumberland?

More specifically, if you know anyone living in the Cheshire parliamentary constituency of Tatton, or the Northumberland constituency of Hexam, we’d

really like to hear from you.

Position of Tatton constituency within Cheshire shown in red .

The Tatton constituency is the “home turf” of Esther McVey, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. Her area includes the towns of Knutsford and Wilmslow, and a number of villag-es such as Alderley Edge, Chelford, Handforth and Mobberley.

Position of Hexham constituency in Northumberland shown in red .

The Hexham constituency is home to Pensions Minister Guy Opperman. The major communities include Hexham, Corbridge, Stocksfield, Ponteland, Prudhoe, Wylam, Haydon Bridge and Haltwhistle.

12 - JUSTICE #2, 2018

Letters to the Editor should be sent to the National Office or to: justice@britishpensions.com. The Editor reserves the right to edit letters for clarity or length.

HAVING YOUR SAY…

Certifiable opportunityI recently had my life certificate witnessed by the clerk/admin-ister of the township in which I live. She told me she witnesses about six certificates a year but knew nothing about frozen pensions, nor did her colleagues in surrounding townships who also witness them. I gave her some CABP business cards and in future, each time she is asked to witness a life certificate, she will offer one. I then made the rounds to neighbouring town-ships, explaining about pension freezing and leaving cards and flyers. Perhaps next time other members need a life certificate witnessed, they too will bring some CABP business cards along with them.

Peter SanguinettiMembership # 21619, Emsdale, Ontario

Earned windfallI am so very grateful for the encouragement I received from CABP members to apply for my pension. I had been reluctant because I left the UK in my early twenties. What a wonderful surprise to be informed that I was indeed eligible, and since I had not claimed it for the last six years, would I care to receive the back payment in monthly additions to my base pension or one lump sum? I chose the latter and within days over $9000 was deposited into my account.

Judy MacNeillMembership # 31998, Sooke, BC

Long-distance commitmentI am moving permanently back to the UK, and even though I will no longer have my pension frozen, I am very much com-mitted to your long-term plan to have the British Government change their archaic law. If there is anything I could do to help in the UK, please consider my offer.

Michael J.E. CraigenMembership # 32106, Kelowna, BC

PersistenceI have taken the ‘sample letter’ in the last issue and emailed it to my MP. I will keep sending it until I receive a positive response.

Rich Rees Membership # 33686, Ayr, Ontario

Dis-agreementThanks for publishing a listing of parliamentary records con-firming that a reciprocal agreement is not required in order for the UK to uprate our pensions (JUSTICE #1, 2018). I ‘kind of ’ knew about these and had seen some in the past, but it was use-ful to see them all gathered together.

Alan W. McFarlaneMembership # 31324, Victoria, BC

Responses to Chairman Ian’s appeal for more help

Count me inI was not one of the three people from across the whole of Canada who responded to the call for businesses in my commu-nity that could help promote CABP. On receiving Ian Andexser’s message, I realized this is not okay. I want to get a fair UK pen-sion and I recognize that this may not happen unless I put in real effort and stop relying on CABP and consortium board members to do the work. I am enclosing the names of local businesses and am happy to approach them for their support.

Fiona Macleod Membership # 17198, Victoria, BC

No longer procrastinatingThanks for the nudge, Ian – looks like I needed one. I have now sent an email asking for support from half a dozen friends and family members in the UK and still have a few more to go. And speaking of procrastinating, today will also be the day I renew our membership in CABP.

Sheila CraigieMembership # 32362, Vancouver, BC

Putting paid to apathyI am disappointed that it took an email from Ian Andexser to make me realize how apathetic I have been – and it appears other members too. We tend to take others for granted and assume “someone else” will do the work. Just because we pay member-ship dues does not mean that we should not also be doing our bit. A more concentrated effort by all of us would surely be to our advantage.

Elizabeth CurnowMembership # 31547, Victoria, BC

JUSTICE #2, 2018 - 13

Be sure to apply for the increase to your frozen pension to today’s unfrozen rate when visiting any country where the pension is not frozen (with the exception of two

countries: the USA and Bermuda). The list of unfrozen countries consists of all 28 European

Union countries (includes French Overseas Departments such as Martinique, Guadeloupe, Tahiti, Saint Barthélemy, St Martin, French Guiana, etc.) plus the following:

Barbados Mauritius

Bosnia- Herzegovina Macedonia

Guernsey Montenegro

Isle of Man Philippines

Israel Serbia

Jamaica Switzerland

Jersey Turkey

It is recommended that you apply by phoning the International Pensions Centre before you leave home (011-44-191-218-7777). You will need to have the following information to hand: The dates you will be arriving and leaving, an address and phone number where you can be reached during your visit, and your nationality (if dual British/Canadian, just say British).

If your spouse also receives a UK pension and is also travel-ling, he/she will need to be available to answer questions. The Category A pensioner (the one with the larger pension) should speak first.

If phoning is not an option and you need to write instead, the mailing address to use is:

The Pension Service 11, Mail Handling Site A, Wolverhampton, WV98 1LW, England. Please note that faxing or emailing the information is not acceptable.

Uprate your pension when

travelingYOU ARE INVITEDto participate in an experimentWhere: Any Tim Hortons coffee shop

When: First Tuesday of any/every month at 11:00 a .m .

Why: To meet fellow UK pensioners

How: Carry a copy of JUSTICE

LET US KNOW HOW THE EXPERIMENT GOES FOR YOU

Take pictures and share your experiences with us!

YOU ARE INVITED

Where there’s a Will…We are grateful to the couple who have designated a planned gift to CABP in their Will .

Though they do not wish to be identified, we want to publicly thank them . By helping to make global pension justice become a reality, their generosity will be felt around the world .

We also thank them for the reminder to all of us of the importance of preparing a Will in advance .

Where there’s a Will…

14 - JUSTICE #2, 2018

How much of your money has the UK withheld from YOU?

by Nigel Nelson

In 2016, we asked if you had ever wondered how much extra you would have received in your UK State Pension if it was not frozen, and we provided a chart like the one below, now updated to include 2017 and 2018. The chart shows how much the pension has eroded for a single person receiving the maximum basic pension.

As you can see by the highlighted line, such a person who retired ten years ago this June has lost out on more than CAD$18,000 – a figure that increases with every passing year. To think what could have been done with this income that has been cold-bloodedly snatched from us!

UK STATE PENSION – “PENSION EROSION” – APRIL 1990 TO PRESENT DAY

JUSTICE #2, 2018 - 15

CABP MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION OR RENEWALClip and mail this form OR join/renew online www.britishpensions.com/joinrenew/ OR by phone 1-888-591-3964

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PLEASE CLIP FORM WHERE INDICATED & MAIL WITH YOUR CHEQUE OR MONEY ORDER TO:Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners, 202–4800 Dundas Street West, Toronto, ON M9A 1B1

In the interests of economy, receipts will not be mailed. We are most grateful for all support, particularly donations to the Action Fund.

Canadian Resident Annual Fee ($25):

Non-Resident Fee: $40 CAD, includes paper Justice OR $25 CAD, includes e-Justice

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Total Enclosed: $

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To read JUSTICE onlineTo read JUSTICE online(instead of in hard copy)

Request from: info@BritishPensions.com

Are you being served?by Fiona Macleod

I am offering my services as a professional writer to any CABP members who would like help with highlighting the dreadful frozen pension situation in mes-sages to UK or Canadian MPs.

I know how important it is for politicians to receive such letters from constituents – how else can they come to understand that people really care and are struggling? I also know that sometimes it is hard to put pen to paper (or fingers to keys) to compose an articulate letter.

Simply contact me by email (f.mac@telus.net) or telephone (250-812-4192) or through CABP’s office and I will be happy to assist with this crucial task.

16 - JUSTICE #2, 2018

Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners (CABP)202 - 4800 Dundas Street West

Toronto M9A 1B1 CanadaPUBLICATION MAIL

AGREEMENT NUMBER 40010836

In memory of the

many who die

while waiting for

their pension to

be indexed, CABP

observes one minute

of silence before

each meeting .

YOU GET ALL THIS FOR $25Membership in CABP buys you…• Top-rated PR campaign in the UK • The energy and support of an international consortium of pensioners• Advice on dealing with the Dept for Work & Pensions (through CABP’s office)• Four magazines a year to keep you informed

Join or renew now!

MEMBERSHIP UP-TO-DATE?Check the Expiry date below and KEEP UP YOUR SUPPORT for global pension justice.

Your ad will be seen

COAST-to-COASTin JUSTICE

PLACE YOUR AD WITH

Malcolm Campbell

malcolmcampbell@britishpensions.com

416-253-6402

1-888-591-3964

Your ad will be seen

COAST-to-COAST

Please use application form inside back cover OR Join/renew online at www.britishpensions.com/joinrenew/ OR Phone 1-888-591-3964