If you have chosen to spend the autumn of your life in a country other than the land of your birth then beware of the British government’s treatment of you should you decide to come to Australia. Settle in America or Europe and you carry on receiving your hard earned UK state pension, index linked each year. Not so in Australia, the moment you arrive in this wonderful country our British government penalises us for our choice and stops the annually index linked review.

Try talking to the UK pension department and all you are told is that there is no agreement with Australia. Speak to the Australian authorities and all they say is to contact the British pension department!

Our new foreign minister has promised to take this up with the UK government as a matter of urgency, mindful of the fact that previous attempts by Australian ministers to get the UK government to agree, have failed.
The minister has stated that the Australian government is being forced to support some UK pensioners who have settled here because they cannot live within the diminishing UK pension.

Retired UK expats have spent their working lives donating to their final index linked state pension only to find that it starts to diminish the minute they set foot in Australia. The complete unfairness of the UK government treating one country differently to another is further exacerbated by the fact that the old age health demands of the UK ex-pats resident in Australia fall on the Australian Government. Doctors’ bills, blood tests, x-rays, specialists’ advice, hospitalisation and drugs should be the burden of the British government but they have handed this responsibility to Australia.

The time has come to take action and support the Australian Foreign Minister in his attempt to force the UK government into an agreement that is long overdue. All UK retired ex pats in Australia should now contact the UK Prime Minister, demanding immediate index liking of pensions dated back to the time they entered Australia.

The Downing Street website gives the contact addresses but advises against sending an email because it probably will not get an answer!!

Send your protest via the following routes but let us club together to bring pressure to bear as quickly as possible.

The Prime Minister.
10 Downing Street.
London. SW1QA 2AA