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Veteran receiving “half state pension” denounces government after budget | Personal Finance | Finance
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Veteran receiving “half state pension” denounces government after budget | Personal Finance | Finance

Anne Puckeridge, a World War II veteran, lives on a meager state pension from just £72.50 per week. And she’s furious.

The hero hoped the budget would see an improvement in a situation which means his pension and that of many others do not increase every year. Instead, after Rachel Reeves spoke in the House of Commons without saying anything on the issue, Anne’s difficulties persist.

Retirees who move to certain countries, including some Commonwealth countries, face the prospect of their state pension payments being frozen for life.

This harsh reality has struck a chord with Anne Puckeridge, who lives in Canada, and she is now considering returning to her homeland in the hope of securing a meeting with Rachel Reeves and the rest of the Labor government to discuss policy “discriminatory”.

Following the Chancellor’s Budget, which failed to resolve the pension freeze issue despite years of desperate appeals from pensioners and campaigners, John Duguid, chairman of the End the pension freeze campaign, warned: “This Budget does nothing to help the nearly half a million British pensioners abroad who have systematically refused all annual increases in state pension despite paying all their National Insurance contributions.

He added: “One of those retirees will soon be Anne Puckridge, a 100-year-old Second World War veteran, who will make the 4,400-mile journey from her home in Canada in December to lobby MPs and challenge the Prime Minister to a meeting.”

Campaigners, feeling snubbed by the recent budget, are pinning their hopes on Labor to engage with Anne during her visit.

It comes especially after the Chancellor highlighted additional funding for veterans, memorials and education about the legacy of the Second World War.

Anne, a veteran who has served in all three branches of the armed forces and paid national insurance throughout her working life in the UK, receives less than half the salary. state pension she would be entitled to it if she remained in Britain.

After moving to Canada at age 76 to be closer to her daughter, Anne has not seen her state pension despite numerous increases over the years.

She described the pension freeze policy as “discriminatory” and claims to have never been informed that her state pension would be frozen during emigration.

Her daughter started a petition to support his mother’s plight, and John stressed: “All of us, forgotten British pensioners abroad, affected by this cruel and outdated policy, are immensely indebted to Anne for shedding light on this scandal misunderstood.

“The fact that she was willing to travel halfway around the world, at the age of almost 100, to fight for others is a testament to her relentless drive and deep sense that things shouldn’t be happen like this.”

Speaking earlier this year on “frozen” pensions, the Government said: “Our priority is to ensure that every pensioner receives the financial support to which they are entitled.

“The government’s policy on the upgrading of the United Kingdom state pension for beneficiaries living abroad is a long-standing practice that has lasted for over 70 years and we continue to increase state pensions abroad where required by law.