Today I have decided to highlight one of my angry blog supporters who lives in Spain and is a victim of the pension scandal that has seen 3.8 million 50s women waiting up to six years to get their pension.
So outraged at the Prime Minister refusing to consider any compensation for the women that she has written to complain to Boris Johnson and highlight how much money he and his ministers have wasted after researching the bills.
As she puts it: ” Had we run our household budgets as you have run yours, we would have lost or homes and been made bankrupt yet you are able to get away with it. You will get extremely good Pensions unlike the true workers of the country who get the smallest Pension in Europe. I actually don’t know how you can sleep at night!
Carole Irwin lives in the mountains behind Malaga. She tells me :
” I am 60 years old and during my working life paid NI payments whilst working as a nurse for several years, and as a civilian in the Police Service. I then brought up my children, so received child benefit credits for those years.
I moved to Spain to retire with my family 14 years ago. 6 years ago l was diagnosed with an incurable and life changing illness. This costs me between 80€ and 90€ in medications per month alone.
This is why I became a member of #WePaidInYouPayOut which has been supporting Back to 60.
….I am one of the many who has received no letter informing me of this change. When I started working it was on the understanding although only an assumed agreement that I would receive my pension at 60.This change of retirement age along with my illness has affected our plans for our future life in Spain. “
This is her full letter to Mr Johnson:
” I am writing to you as l have many concerns about the enormous amounts of money being wasted by Government’s various departments.
In order to be concise l am writing it in bullet points so as not to waste your time.
Firstly Chris Grayling ( who possibly has wasted the most money) who has served in several roles during his time in government and unbelievably still is employed as
Secretary of State for Transport of the United Kingdom
(2016 to 2019). Had he been employed in the private sector would have been dismissed as his record shows how incapable he actually is!
*Chris Grayling alone has so far wasted almost 3 billion pounds of public money…
*At least £500 million to sort out the mess he made when attempting to privatise the probation service (source: National Audit Office)
*£33 million when sued by Eurotunnel over Seaborne Freight fiasco (source: The Guardian)
*£38 million – cost to the economy in the north of England due to the rail chaos in July 2018 (source The London Economic)
*£50,000 on the failed ‘lorry jam’ Brexit exercise in Kent (source: The Guardian)
*£70,000 on failed attempt to ban books from prisons (source: The Independent)
*£2 billion cost to taxpayers on the collapse of Virgin Trains east coast franchise (source The London Economic)
*£15 million a year in additional costs to the Carillion contract to run facilities management in prisons (source The London Economic)
*£5 million on ‘wasted rail fares’ for HS2 staff (source: Huffington Post)
*£50 million on cancelled No Deal ferry contracts (source: The Guardian)
*£32 million of charges that were unlawfully collected – which the government were ordered to pay back (source The London Economic)
*£23 million contract to develop a new generation of GPS tracking tags for dangerous offenders written off because the project proved “too challenging” (source The London Economic)
*£60 million over the £130 million original budget on the electronic tagging programme – described by the PAC as a “catastrophic waste of public money” (source The London Economic)
More government waste is shown by the Tax payers alliance.
Although excellent work has been undertaken by the Cabinet Office’s Efficiency and Reform Group in terms of finding savings, taxpayers’ cash has still been wasted in a number of ways, with significant sums ripe for being saved in many areas, including:
*£53 billion – Additional cost of funding pay and pensions for public sector workers over and above the private sector average, based on analysis of figures from the Office for National Statistics and the Pension Policy Institute
*£25 billion – Amount wasted through inefficient public sector procurement and poor use of outsourcing, based on an authoritative report from the Institute of Directors
*£20.3 billion – Cost to the economy of public sector fraud, according to the National Fraud Authority
*£5 billion – Amount paid in benefits to those with an income in excess of £100,000
*£4 billion – Losses to the taxpayer from RBS and the sale of Northern Rock£2.9 billion – Amount spent needlessly by the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills and Department for Culture, Media & Sport, which should both be scrapped
*£1.2 billion – Annual subsidy to foreign farmers through the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy
The planning of the London garden bridge cost £58 million without so much as a pot plant being placed!
These figures are also almost certainly an underestimate. A rigorous assessment of the public sector efficiency commissioned by the European Central Bank found that if the UK’s bloated public sector were as efficient as that in the economies of countries like the US, Australia, and Japan, no less than £137 billion could have been saved in the last year! Those is a Huge amount of money!
In addition to the big ticket items, we have identified hundreds of examples of smaller sums being wasted. It is, however, all still taxpayers’ money and there is no excuse for waste, regardless of the amount involved. Among the culprits identified are:
Arts Council: Gave a £95,000 grant to artists in Brighton for “Skip”, a rubbish dumpster outlined with yellow lights!
Crawley Council: Spent £5,070 on 12,200 hot drinks from vending machines for council employees, when the equivalent number of tea bags would have cost just £200!
Department for International Development: Spent £21.2 million on a road maintenance project in Bangladesh, later pulled due to “fiduciary irregularities” after it emerged that less than 10% had actually been spent on roads!
Durham Council: Funded a £12,000 clothing allowance to allow councillors to wear “Geordie Armani”!
Hull Council: Spent £40,000 on a concert in honour of the councillor who is Lord Mayor this year!
Ministry of Defence: Paid £22 for light bulbs that are normally 65p!
Prison Service: Paid £720,000 to professional actors for role playing that is aimed at helping inmates become employed.
Scottish Government: Signed a £1.4 million 4-year contract for taxis for civil servants in Edinburgh – despite staff being told to use buses.
Stoke-on-Trent Council: Spent £330,000 to pay for redundancy packages and subsequently rehiring 25 members of staff.
All this money wasted by your government was paid for by the hard working tax payers and I’m sure if l did more research l could find many more examples.
One being to your own embarrassment the purchasing of water cannons. I wonder what they were worth at the local scrap dealer?
There are a great many extremely angry women not yet receiving their hard earned Pensions which was paid for by themselves throughout their lives by paying national insurance.
I’m sure they would not have chosen to waste so much money in the way you did, as had that money still been available you could have decided we earned and deserved our pensions.
Had we run our household budgets as you have run yours, we would have lost or homes and been made bankrupt yet to are able to get away with it. You will get extremely good Pensions unlike the true workers of the country who get the smallest Pension in Europe. I actually don’t know how you can sleep at night!
Due to the appalling waste as listed above, please do it get too comfortable in your role as Prime Minister as l have a strong feeling come the next general election you will have many people choosing not to vote for your incompetent and cruel party.”
On Byline next month I am planning to try and see how much money the PM has also wasted on the No Deal Brexit which increasingly looks unlikely to happen on October 31. This can be added to the figures she has researched.
But I thought it was worth publishing this gigantic list because it highlights the anger people feel about this issue and the waste of taxpayers money by politicians. No doubt the reply will be stuck in a queue in the PM’s correspondence unit. But wider publication will not allow him so easily to get away with it. Nor should he.
Westminster Confidential 
I agree with all thats been said..im one of the 50s born women who had to work an extra 5 years till i recieved my pension..i have not had it easy health wise..have had cancee twice..and now heart issues plus my ankle keeps giving way..but still i do 12 hoyrs a week work just to get by as pension is not enough to live on..worked all my life and this is what it has come too..government have got a lot to answer for and pkaying with peoples lifes..its disgraceful!!!
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Your pension is below the poverty line that’s why you still have to work after your retirement as many will also have to do The pension is being paid below the poverty line which is 200 pounds a .week, The pensions should be above the poverty line in all fairness.
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well its sad to read the above when the injustice to 1950’s women this document should be published in every newspaper for all to read.Persons responsible should be brought to task re the justification to the actions £137 billion and the 279 taken from the NI fund .
also Gove;s failure of a large amount it all adds up .
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Reblogged this on Tory Britain!.
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This list needs to be in all the papers ect,also their wages they get paid,plus their pension which also comes out of the tax payers pockets, all I can say is they are so corrupt it is unbelievable,they have no conscious about robbing old ladies and leaving them struggling, and may I add some suicidal because of what this government have done to them,really shocking to say the least,lies and robbers is an understatement ,they would rob their own mother…
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Totally agree with making all this information public; after so much negative publicity aimed at the UK National Press a good investigative journalist could certainly get their teeth into this. Articles would certainly provide very interesting reading and show the Press in a very positive light – why haven’t one of the Nationals taken up this challenge ??
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It’s absolutely appalling, how on earth are they allowed to get away with this is beyond me.
I like millions of others have worked from being 15 and paid and still paying into this pot, which without a doubt rightly belongs to us it’s our money .
I’ve just been informed that I’m at high risk of redundancy in the next three months.
At age 60 and a single person solely responsible upon my salary is the most daunting process.
I’m sick with worry unable to sleep at night
But the fat cats who are filling their pockets will be sleeping soundly you can bet.
Will be forever in your debt David and all the backto60 supporters.
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I have also been made redundant when I was 63 that was 1.5 years ago,yes the government have much to answer for.
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Brilliant points made, let us hope a national newspaper picks up on this. My wife who also has long term health problems is left devastated by this pension con, 48 years n.i. contributions, another 15 months till pension. THE most uncaring, cynical government ever, unfortunately I don’t think it stops with the Tories!!
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Wow! Carole’s amazing research and so well put together, thank you for pointing it out to BJ and us all, will be interesting to see if you receive a response from BJ. It is a disgraceful waste of money, hopefully us 50s women will soon get a positive outcome.
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I was about to comment the same. Really dedicated research and a succinct piece of writing. I’m losing hope for myself personally (aged 65 and SPA of 66 next October) but still fighting the battle for the sake of everyone to follow. They cannot be allowed to get away with this.
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I agree with you Lynn but you’re still entitled to whatever amount you’ve lost because of these parasites.
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Seniors who have spent decades fighting to end the frozen state pension scandal are just as angry about this outrageous waste of taxpayers money.To be told the ‘country cannot afford’ to give the victims of this theft of their pension money their annual cost of living increase is an outrage when all have paid for their state pensions with lifetimes of NI contributions. The 4% affected by this have as much right to be treated the same as the 96% who get an indexed linked pension. Money that belongs to them held back just because of where they happen to live in retirement, and blatant discrimination the UK government gets away with decade after decade.
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Well done Carole what a brilliant write up. This is criminal. Time for a big overhaul I think.
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This eye opening letter from this lady should be sent to the judge who threw the application out. I am too one the petitioners and feel swindled by the decision, I had the children, brought them up, looked after my husband whom sadly I lost in 2007, saw to housework, bills and all that went with married life. I only took maternity leave then resumed working again. I’ve missed my children growing up also now my grandchildren. As a widow I lost my husbands pension. This country is a shambles, I’m ashamed of the way we now are more likely than not to die before we reach pension age. This I’m very sure was the government plan.
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Carole Irwin deserves a medal for this. I knew there was significant money wasted by Grayling alone but the fact that Carol has identified all these other examples of the atrocious waste of tax payers money is a massive achievement. Well done her. This info needs to be pushed out there in the mainstream media and other channels for all to see. It’s scandalous that ministers like Grayling can’t be prosecuted for gross incompetence and wasting taxpayers money, why is he still employed? He should be languishing at Her Majesty’s pleasure for defrauding the general public. I also would think the compensation owed to us 1950’s women would be dwarfed by the funds put on one side for the fiasco that is Brexit alone let alone all the other appalling waste. At the end of the day, the government stole 6 years of all of our NI Contributions, it’s was theft pure and simple – when was that ever legal?
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Disgraceful me too a 50s woman had to work until aged 65.5 years I agreewithall.theabovethis government is fraudulent
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I have already paid 44 years NIC. Currently l have to work another 6 years before l receive my state pension – 50 years in total. But who do l vote for as every party has been involved with the robbing of my pension.
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The letter is utterly brilliant and when reading gives everyone who can vote an insight into the malpractices throughout government with public money. We are paying for these cock ups, money is flittered away through government agencies like water down a plug hole.
I am beyond disgusted at government and never in all my life have I seen such a callous, self centred egotistical group as Boris, his supporters and the devil in carnate Dominic Cummings
The government is in power to work for the people. Instead it works for itself, we have seen the manipulation of these people in power. Lie after lie, promise after promise.
I sympathise with the leavers of Brexit, understanding their frustration. However they must see through the political manipulation. Grinning like the Cheshire cat Boris brings back to parliament his wonderful new deal. Plonks a mega documemt of the greatest magnitude in front of MP’s saying he wants a decision in a couple of days so we can get Brexit done by 31st October. I’m sick to death of his lying dead in a ditch before he will relent to an extension.
Logically how the hell would that happen. Most of the jargon in that document would be legal and not easy to understand. When Parliament votes in favour of more time is needed. Boris then throws his toys out his pram and wants an election.This has all been about an election no more no less.
He thought the 3.8 million women of the 50’s would win their JD. Hence is offer to look into, plus he knew more seniors vote conservative. Add in their families and friends a done deal he would be elected.
We lost the JD so plan B had to kick in. He now had to manipulate the voters of leave the EU and those sick to death of Brexit. His act as the super hero rallying to get a brilliant new deal then being stopped in his tracks by parliament adds to the facade. He portrays the image of the people’s champion. Those gulable enough will vote but our generation will see this farce for what it is. I will not be voting for any main party ever again. We could have had the Monster raving loony party in power and they couldn’t do any worse than this shower.
When you have gone through life treated as a push over. Given no equality no human rights then you get to your 60’s and your treated with the same contempt. We will not put up with this no more.
We have raised the funding for the JR so we will appeal our case. This time we need to use the cover up of the theft of the NI funds which in turn us why the age of retirement has been made. Not the government’s statement we are living longer. We need to challenge why the government in 2016 changed state pension to a Benefit. The judges in our JR showed no interest in the in – equalities we have undergone. So we may have to use a different route.
Dee
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Well said, totally agree! Totally agree with everything you have said, I too will be doing the same come Election Day! We need to get this shower of sh**e out of power and put in anyone who will give us our pensions back, I don’t care who they are but it won’t be the main parties, been there, done that, you can’t trust them they are nothing but self serving liars!
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I find it shocking that this waste of enormous sums of money goes on and politicians of all parties accept it and.keep quiet. We just can’t trust any of them. Even though us 60’s women have political support no one seems to be able to help us..If politicians are impotent why do we have them and pay them huge wages and massive expense claims?
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I was born Oct 54 worked full time since 17 years old.Had 3 children still working full time back then only got 11 weeks post birth pittance of statstory maternity pay so back to work whilst not fit due to need. I was made redundant at 64 due to council cuts alone with several other women of similar age. I doubt the average age of those in my department was even 30 it was clear people felt older women should go before younger ones as they kept pointing out they had small children and needed jobs more.I am now 65 and will if they don’t change the rules again in October 2020. I resent them saying this is sbour equailty i never had social or economic equailty ever.This is about stealing money from the NI to bail out bankers and anything else they chose above our pension. I will not lose my home which my partner and I have worked 96 years between us to have for our old age… Will turn facilit8es off and starve first the Tory government supported by lib dems will not get my home they have took everything else.The author is correct they wasting billions on their failures and treat us with contempt when we have the nerve to say we want our pensions and a shread of f dignity in old age
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This is an absolute disgrace, this letter should be published in the national press to highlight just how incompetent our politicians are. I am sure if previous governments were also looked at the financial wastage there would also be extremely high, these people should face court proceedings for the waste of public money like this when they use every excuse under the sun not to pay our pensions 😡😡
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It should also be published how many old people die of hyperthermia over each winter as well because they cannot afford heating,I googled this and the facts are shocking,these are people who have been the back bone workers of this nation and so have we …this government needs outing they are not fit to run this nation,they are in it for them selfs to line their own pocket while the poor suffer,same as universal credit,children going hungry,people with cancer ect being kicked off and being told they are fit for work,when the fat cats of the DWP are getting pay rises because they have made people’s lives a misery…look how much they get paid for doing this,all of their wages and pensions need bringing to light also expenses …show them for what they are greedy fat cats at the nations expense it is not justifiable at all….
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i am dreading winter cant afford heating thats a bloody luxury
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OMG!!!! I Salute this lady for highlighting this and the research she has done. Its disgraceful. Thankyou to this strong lady and you David for sharing this. APPALLING
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https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/tory-ministers-private-school-fees-children-diplomats-military-mod-foreign-office-a9181211.html
Another huge amount of money the goverment spends out of our tax money!!
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The government should employ Carole Irwin to try and get their financial house in order. She has highlighted wanton waste if this money weren’t paid by the hardworking people of the UK they wouldn’t have the privilege of spending it so rashly. Conservative Government your time is up, the people are more than fed up with your unaccountability.
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Well done Carole the government would do well to employ you.David could you not get Carols letter printed in the national newspapers before another general election is announced and all the 50s ladies, their families and friends can deny smug Boris our votes for him and his gang, Jeremy Corbyn love him or not would do something for us at least he understands us,Good luck to all our ladies and once again a big thanks to Carole,I have only another 14 months until I can claim my pittance sorry I mean pension.
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I am a Registered Nurse aged 62 and still having to work full time. I have fought Cancer twice and now have to work until I am 66. This government should hang their heads in shame.
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I couldn’t agree more, I am sick to death with the Government wasting money. £60 million just roles off their tongues like its nothing. £37MILLION to police protesters, it’s disgusting. I am a 50s woman with severe arthritis, even had surgery, I have to clean other folks’ houses to keep my house! I live alone, no other income, could rant forever! The government have stolen and wasted my money on nothing!!
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Disgusting. They care only for themselves. I retired last year at the age of 59, after over 40 years full time working in the NHS. A job i was paid for 37.5 hours but was expected to do much more for nothing. I missed out on being at home with my son, as i was led to believe that at 60 i would have a state pension. At 54 I was diagnosed with breast cancer, a diagnosis that hit me hard. I used to live for work, not after diagnosis. I worked till my 59th birthday, but had to give up and use my small occupational lump sum to fund 7 1/2 years of living before i get my state pension. I have also cared for our parents, i am now full time carer for my mother. I have never claimed any benefits except foe Child Benefit, what a fool. If I was on benefits I would be at least £700 a month better off. Who is the stupid one now – ME.
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You go girl I agree with everything you have said, I am constantly worried that when I eventually get to 66 (Im 60 now) i am not going to be able to afford to live. My rent takes half my pay now with no help avaiiable from anywhere else!!!
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Well I agree with all of the above comments. I’m a 1950’s born women still working part time. I feel so strongly that equality in all its forms have been denied to us for all of our lives and now they want to redress the balance. More thought and a slower implementation should have been used to bring us to the retirement age of 66. We have paid in all our working lives .. my contributions stand currently at 49 years. Please ladies stay strong hopefully something positive will happen soon and maybe we can receive what we are overdue !!!
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Congratulations to Carole Irwin on highlighting the outstanding waste of public money.
I hope PM Boris Johnson and his government are really proud of themselves and their willful waste of public money.
I have said it before and will say it again come the next general election the Back to 60 and 50’s women and theirs families who can vote need to stand up and be counted,
I for one am sick of how this country is treating the working class elderly women who have paid in to the system.
Like Carole I don’t know how these people who are in government can sleep at night their arrogance is unbelievable, we elected them and we can dismiss them at the next election.
I agree with Margaret Smith print Carole’s letter in all the national newspapers.
Hopefully Boris your government’s days are numbered in terms of being in office, if not God help us all.
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Fantastic research. So far I have worked 49 years with only a fortnight break due to redundancy, I think I have more than done my bit but am forced to carry on until I am 66.
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The Government has also wasted money by cutting the Youth Service. They are now left with disgruntled teenagers. The crime rate has gone up and knife crime is on the increase. These statistics must have a bearing on the cost that the Conservatives have created. While we are expected to wait until 66 before we are allowed our State Pensions which we have all worked for young people can not get jobs. If we were allowed to retire this could free up suitable position for work for youngsters. In the meantime we are told it is unfair to expect young people to foot the pensions bill . Didn’t we do this when we were young!
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young people are not paying for old people the government just put that out as a ruse the pension pot has been paid by us thats what your national insurance stamp was
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This is the story of a very brave lady… We all have stories to tell and know ladies who are either suffering or have passed in and so will never ever receive a penny… I have said it before and will say it again… MEN WOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN TREATED LIKE THE 1950’S WOMEN HAVE….
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Brilliant research! And I am sure that is just the tip of the iceberg. Well done!!
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A fantastic piece of research, well done and thank you for your diligence, unfortunately if I were you I wouldn’t expect a response any time soon, because Boris will be very unwilling to reply! Although some poor minion may get lumbered with it.
This government have no compassion and definitely no shame.
I too am one of the 50’s women who have been cheated, I still have 14 months to wait, that’s if they dont move the goalposts again
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I am a 50’s woman and I really cannot understand how any M P can sleep at night. Just about everyone of them must think their job is a licence to print money as most of them spend public money with no thought how it got into the coffers. Normal hardworking people have had pension age increased and their pension amount is a joke . These M P’s are not only getting better pensions but retiring a lot earlier than us. It needs to be changed to make fairer. They should all hang their heads in shame…as we have theives that govern us and supposed to be representing us…WELL god help us..as no one else will….
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What a fantastic piece of work by this lady. Put so elequentley. I live in Hull and didn’t know about the concert. And it’s cost.
How can he now ignore our plight.
All the people who are saying no are the ones with a substantial salary. And an even more sustantial pension
Shame on them
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Enhorabuenas mujer! Que numeros mas enorme hay asi; este PM es un gillipollas y estropeando lodemas despues de Thatcher, B liar Blair, Cameron para mas de cuarente años en este pais.
Una vez stuvimos Grande Bretagne y por falta de los politicos a dereche y izquierda somos y tenemos casi nada ya. No somos Reino Unido tempoco; un pais fracasado y despistado.
Bien dicho todo de usted sobre estos gastos absurdos.
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First comment in Spanish. For those who don;t know Spanish. A gillipollas means in colloquial English either a “dickhead ” or “arsehole” and the reference here is to Boris Johnson.
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Spot on re gillipollas……
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Go Girl
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Roll on the elections 😂
I too am one of the 50s women who’s pension was stolen 😡
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Yes and just like the Councils who get away with not paying just compensation for causing brain and spinal injury which ruins your health, your career, loss of home, your loss of pension, family relationships, no cover for future medical treatment – yet they can find £1.4m for city of culture, £27m for cycle route…..and to add to this NO PENSION!!!!
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Wow!!! Well done, Carole, for researching this and showing just how reckless public money has been used. Hard earned contributions from people who include all of us.
I agree with others comments that this list should be put in newspapers and brought to the attention of as many people as possible, including judge.
I am now unable to work due to severe osteoarthritis and have my pension age increased twice, now 66. Another 15 months to go and the money I scrimped together for my retirement will be used to prop me up but what happens when something breaks down, needs replacing? I am cold and eat badly. I live alone, don’t have holidays or new clothes. I struggled all my life but I just got by, raising my daughter alone with no free child care, no fairness at work but I still balanced my books but now I have been knocked for six through no fault of my own. These politicians should be ashamed of themselves for putting women in this despicable position. We need this to sorted fairly NOW we can’t survive much longer. Help.
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Well said David. In light if a general election in December now being put forward. I think a lot of the lovely 1950s ladies will be voting with their feet.
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This informative article should be published
Wherever possible. Everyone and everybody needs to read this and yes it has cost us our pensions but also a cost the ever poor NHS service, Social Care
And so much more
If we are going to have a general election Boris and the greedy conservatives mp’s deserve to loose
They all look out for themselves not the average working man/women!
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Carole Irwin your words are perfect. You’ve hit the nail on the head. They have robbed the pensioners of the UK to line their own pockets and put money into the ‘fund’ to pay for everything else. It’s a bloody disgrace!!!!
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Thank you David and thank you Carol for your research. We all know that millions have been wasted but it’s good to see the evidence. You are so right about housekeeping. This lot think it’s just a game of Monopoly. Meanwhile the people who have grafted all their lives, paid into the system, are left high and dry over this obscene waste of public funds.
I hope your health is at the optimum at present Carol. Stealing our pensions has not helped. We are not going to stop fighting though no matter how much they ignore us.
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This is a fantastic letter by Carol Irwin on behalf of all women over60 . It’s an absolute disgrace how they have been robbed of their own money.
We should look after our own people who have contributed all the money in the first place.
She should be prime minister.. and I for one would vote for her.
Judy Dyer
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Judy Dyer
Lifestyle / Transformational Coach
07916 281821
judy@judydyer.co.uk
http://www.divinelydifferent.co
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Hi David, I’m sure, after reading everyone’s comments, that we all agree that this letter should be sent to the media, newspapers, morning media shows and spread through social media( Facebook, Twitter etc.).
Is it possible to do this as everyone should be made aware of this before any general election. I will certainly not be voting on any of the major parties as everyone of them are liars, cheats and fraudsters. They will all promise us everything until they get our vote and then they backtrack on their promises. My grandmother always said use our votes as our great grandmothers fought hard for us. We are still in the same position 100 years later a shocking disgrace.
I applaud you Carole for your research and letter it’s absolutely brilliant and thanks to you David for never giving up on us.
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Thanks for this really informative article/letter
Glad you cc’d us in
They are just spivs in Oxbridge clothing
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I had to stop reading this article, as I sit here with my forth broken bone in less than two years, l should have retired 4 years ago l also Have R.A. l have to work another 2 year’s and l know l will break something again just hope it’s not my back next time. If any other had company had done the same as this Government they would have been jailed.
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I am Carole’s husband and want to say how proud I am of all the time and effort she has dedicated to this cause over the last few months. I would also like to point out that MP’s can claim their pension after only 8 yrs in Parliament and the amount is determined as ‘The minimum pension rate is 50% of the parliamentary allowance (after eight years of service). Between the completion of eight and 18 years service, each additional year of service attracts an additional pension of 2.5% of the parliamentary allowance’ No wonder they have no interest or compunction to do anything to help the ’50’s Women’ as they’re to busy with their noses in the trough and feathering their own nests.
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Clive, No wonder you are proud of Carole, she is an inspiration to us all and I am so pleased she has received so many lovely comments from us BackTo60 Ladies.
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You are so right being proud of Carole as I’m sure I can speak for all of us 1950s women and she should be given a job of clearing out all of these parasites from our government as not one of them deserves our vote.
She has done a tremendous job on this research and this should be published in all of the media but then a lot of the media are to scared to get involved in this. Please send her my best wishes. 👍🙂
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This is incredible . I wonder how many people know about this ?
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Well said and thank you for taking the time to find out what this government have wasted money on
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Thank you for putting your/our plight across.
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wow Carole! What an amazing piece of work! I’m sorry to hear you are not well; it is a common factor for many of the 50s women who had their pension stolen from them. Otherwise, we could have employed you to be ‘Mum’ to the government and dole out their pocket money and monitor their spend until you were satisfied they could be trusted with adult responsibility for money. They like to call this role ‘Chancellor of the Exchequer’ but it’s just another example of the value women add to society that they choose to undervalue. She didn’t even mention the £271 billion they misappropriated from the pensions pot which is why they choose to ‘liberate’ monies from vulnerable women.
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I retrospectively read all comments after posting my own spontaneous reaction.Two further comments:
1. Just who can we vote for? the Liberals abandoned any thought of democracy when they decided to simply ignore the majority who voted to Leave the EU (or have successive referenda until we got the right answer). Labour has been sitting on the fence for years and are now supporting remainers tactics (Afterall, even Jeremy Corbyn can recognise this is his last chance of being PM and he’s hanging on by his fingernails). The remainers in parliament are behaving like spoilt children who, when not getting their own way, have sat down in the middle of the supermarket aisle, arms and legs crossed determined to obstruct all progress in any direction. The election is no longer a Brexit question: just how can we accept parliament deliberately flouting a democratic vote, simply because they didn’t like the result? it was this thinking, ignoring what the people were saying, that led to the referendum in the first place. This is now a question of democracy: should parliament abide by the decisions of the people? If not, we become like a communist country (China springs to mind and the remainers seem to think that is a disgraceful setup!)
2. From what I have heard, many 50s women are sick and, often, it costs the government more than if they’d just lived up to decades-old agreements, with honour, and paid their pensions. Afterall, the only reason we are in this state is the lack of pro-active thinking and misapproriation of the NI pot by successive governments – Tory and Labour!
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Well said Sandra I couldn’t agree more.
I live in Scotland and won’t vote SNP either as they are no better and just want to split the country it’s bad enough that they have split Scotland 😡
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I couldn’t agree more! They have spent money unnecessarily and taken our money leaving us us poor or shattered when we have worked so hard all our lives. My life has had to change drastically because I was unaware of the pension age change. It’s not fair!
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It should be full restitution for all! Those of us on our own are struggling! I cared for my Husband for 13 years after a Stroke , He died 3 years ago. I get no help whatsoever!
We are all in this together .
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It needs to be FULL RESTITUTION! the State Pension to those of us at ‘The Bottom’
(So to speak) as we have not been able to good private/company pensions in our own right!
To some who are ‘lucky’ the State Pension is only like ‘POCKET MONEY’ to them, to those of us at the ‘BOTTOM’ it is a ‘NECESSITY’ to help us through living. We need our
Pensions !!!
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It would not be right if some got support/restitution in some form or another and others go without! I have paid in 41 yrs and need help/restitution I have to struggle on my own with no help on less than what I would get if I was drawing my pension!
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We all need to stick together and say ‘ only full restitution ‘ if we start to waiver they will take advantage. Tories care ‘nothing’ for the working classes , (Labour are not much better). They will only give you ‘crumbs’ if they can get away with it.
I read the other day that It was said ‘there were about 1,000,000 women that needed help with JSA and Pension Credit, where did they get that figure from!!!!!!!! What about the rest of us that are ‘just about existing ‘ and get no support.
I don’t want BLOODY BENEFITS, I just want my PENSION!!!!!!!!
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I have read all the comments with interest and agree with most. However, I think that all 50s woman need to be on the same page when it comes to a general election. Whilst we are complaining about the current government, there are lots of woman who have relied on Tory MPs to fight their cause and I appreciate that some of these MPs are on board but most. are not. I appreciate that your vote is private to you but please use it wisely, such as,ask your self, which government is likely to get into power.. And although brexit will be their manifesto, please dont be misled by false promise. After all isnt that what Boris did when running for leadership. I would hope that all 3.5 million woman effected will turn out and vote because this where we can be heard and make a difference.
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But who do we vote for – after losing the judicial review my MP sent me a completely different stance on what Labour would ‘agree’ to, to what he said they were prepared to do prior to the court decision – l don’t trust any of them. They are there for themselves not for us so lets not kid ourselves they understand our situation
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WOW!! Well reported
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Just read newspaper clipping from Daily Express Saturday October 26th.
Heading” Drop legal threat and we will sort pensions out for 1950’s women.
Statement from Tory MP Tim Loughton. He went onto say there had been an injustice which should be put right. Parliament can settle their grievance quite easily and quickly if they drop their legal challenge. He had planned to meet Therese Coffey this week until news of the legal challenge emerged. He went onto say the most likely solution is comprise. There is no doubt this is an injustice, these women have paid into the pot. There should be an equatable solution quite quick and easy if we get all the legal action out of the way “.
Well ladies says it all, election coming up the dangling of the old carrot again. What is apparent is his statement that there has been injustice from a Tory MP.
This makes me even more cynical about our JR judgement. Two judges dealt the blow one male and one female. The female was not in court according to feedback on our case. Is this yet another stitch up……..it gets to the stage you wonder what Country your living in. Where has honour and honesty gone, where has compassion and support gone.
I put my hands up I have voted for these idiots in power but no more. I appreciate we have little to choose from within parties but we have all got to sort this God damned mess out.
The more I read on the Tories the more wound up I become. Lie after lie and the millions spent on Boris dead in a ditch 31st October plot we’ve all paid for. The waste of money makes you cringe whilst were all struggling like hell.
I feel were on some comedy sketch and we’re the butt of the joke. Well Boris were nobodies joke least of all yours. Youv’ e messed with wrong people this time.
I’ve messaged all other parties and told them the 50’s women need restitution they need their lives back. We need a champion someone who will resolve our plight not talk the talk. We need a guarantee that this will be sorted. Their are 3.8 million women their families, friends and supporters. We will not be played about with for their satisfaction to achieve being elected. We want what’s rightfully ours and what we’ve paid into all these years.
Dee
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Thankyou David, Joanne and everyone for all of your amazing hard work for us!!!!!!
What does this GOVERNMENT NOT UNDERSTAND!!!!!! We do not want crumbs, we want what we have paid in for!!!!!!
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This was my favourite reply to David’s bl0g re the 1950s women pension scandal. GENERAL ELECTION December 12th 2019. I vow to spoil my ballot paper by crossing out all candidates and writing on the ballot paper. WHERE is my Stolen State Pension? Resistance is not futile. Its the best way to make a point that will be heeded somewhere in the dirty halls of Whitehall.
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I am a 50’s woman who was expecting
To retire at 60 with no knowledge or
Communication otherwise. I have worked 47
Years with 43 full Ni contributions and 4 years
Half approx. I just checked what state pension
I will be entitled to and 😱 can’t believe it!!
Apart from that I have just been made redundant and really struggling to get a job at 63 years old and only minimal benefit. This is really affecting my health with stress and
Worry but no option. Even the minimal pension
I was talking about would help minimise
The stress a little but unfortunately this
Has been taken away….. I am only 1 in millions
With true stories like this but I really don’t know what to do….. this has to change, and very soon, this is our own money we have paid in…….. Mary
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Well said, its all true and and a disgrace, i am 60, now have to work until 66 despite ill health, my husband is ill, has been denied esa benefit and going to appeal. My job is under threat, if that goes we have NOTHING how are we expected to survive? You couldnt write it!
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Well done that woman. I have just reached my 65 years and still have to wait a further year before I get my pension. Worked well over 47 never had children and never had benefits and more importantly to me NEVER been notified that firstly the hike from 60 to 62 and then the further hike to 66. Whilst not against equality and those who wish to continue to work if able, we never got a chance to save towards our living expenses.
My savings after a lifetime of contributing and not receiving anything from the system, sadly did not last that long. Don’t know if it is too early to ask ? but how would we be paid the money owed back? Will I live long enough to take benefit from it?
Keep fighting and god speed.
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We were given 5 years to start with, the last year added in 2011 was a money saving exercise bought forward for ‘AUSTERITY’ apparently we were ‘all in it together’ according to OSBORNE and CAMERON!!!!!!
TOTALLY IMMORAL AND UNFAIR TO GIVE US AN EXTRA YEAR to save them money!!!!!!
THEY DO NOT PLAY AROUND WITH THEIR ‘GOLD PLATED RING FENCED PENSIONS’
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I agree the government has wasted so much money. I’m single and have worked for 47 years and still got another 3 years to go. I’m not in good health as have osteoarthritis and finding it difficult to work full time and have therefore taken a job 3 days a week just to tide me over until I get my pension in 3 years time. I hope this government will have a clear conscience when they get their big fat pension. At least Dick Turpin wore a mask!!
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Your attack on public sector pensions to mostly women workers is unwelcome in this context. We paid heavily into our pensions and would have a higher wage than average business employees due to demand for teachers and the higher qualifications required.
Your selective examples of council spending suggest you are a Tory voter and therefore responsible for the 2010 government bringing forward the legislation that has removed our pension early.
The tory government’s since 2010 have used the bank crash as an excuse to remove funding to support our welfare state system including pensions and pass it to their establishment elite through tax cuts. We want it back.
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Need to vote wisely on 12th December.
My concern is wasting my vote as politicians promise the earth, often don’t deliver and once the vote is cast, not a great deal of redress.
I’d really like some views on where best to place my X
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I am going to spoil my ballot paper. My little bit of anarchy. I will be writing on it, “where is my stolen pension” Better than waiting another year for an appeal. No one to vote for anyway. Its not just us who are disgruntled, it’s the majority of society. There is online evidence that this works. Democracy has died, killed by sociopaths and liars. My husbands pensions should be his, not having to keep me. Losing my 3 and half years of state pension has ruined our collective retirement. You can never have those years back.
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I totally agree with all your comments. All of us 1950 women should refrain from posting a vote. Imagine 3.8m women plus other family members votes lost for the conservative or labour party they should be coming up with a solution for us to ensure our votes. There has never been a better time! All of us should be writing to our MP now to tell them if our plan!
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Excellent letter.
This is an obscene situation .
As a retired police officer I dealt with robberies on a daily basis but nothing on the scale of the £47,000 taken from my wife by these faceless bureaucrats operating their system of ‘legitimate criminality’
I sincerely hope that one of these idiots in power has the decency to make the right decision and give back to these women what is theirs!
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David can you please tell Joanne to STOP claiming she has a mandate to speak for all 50s women. It’s becoming embarrassing because I’m a 50s woman but I know that the EDM has fallen (I expect Joanne knows that too but isn’t going to publicise the fact while she is expecting women to fund her games). I know that much of what she says and claims are just not true.
It is becoming a cult and its making fools of 50s women. She has blocked thousands of women from her group so we have no way to put our views to her so I’m hoping you can pass the message on and ask her to stop claiming to speak for us all.
.
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My thoughts exactly. Well said. Some people just like being in the limelight. The rest of us are in the miserable darkness after waiting for a court decision that gunned us down. I bet Joanne is not poverty stricken like us. Could be wrong but I doubt it.
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I can’t understand why no political party has promised to pay back the 1960s women. Surely this is an election winner with 3.8 million women and their families going to vote this December. Give the women their money back, win the election.
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Let’s wait and see, but even if Boris promised to do it I don’t think many of us ladies or our families would believe him, he is a down and out liar and only looks after the rich. Yesterday in PMs Questions he referred to us 50s Women as That Group & Pensioners, if only we were Pensioners not having to fight to be one.
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Did he really say that.? Boris is a bully. I wish I was a pensioner too with a bus pass! I could never understand why we were allowed to have free prescriptions at 60 but nothing else. Surely it was because we are all slowly and certainly falling to bits. Perhaps they were being kind or they just forgot to give us even more hell. A ordinary hours pay would not even buy one item now in the chemist.
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Yes he did Lynne , see these two extracts from Waspi Posting & Daily Mirror yesterday
Thank you to Ronnie Campbell MP for asking a #WASPI question in PMQs. @BorisJohnson said “another £1bn has been added to support of WASPI pensioners”. Is this in addition to the oft-quoted £1.1bn concession or the same £££s? Interesting Boris refers to us as “WASPI pensioners”
Back in July, Mr Johnson promised to “return to this issue with fresh vigour and new eyes and see what I can do to sort it out.”
Yet since becoming Tory leader he has not offered any new help to the women, who later lost a case against the government in the High Court.
Today he would say only that “we are indeed looking at what more we can do to satisfy that issue”. He also said it was a “difficult issue” and that government has already “done our best to try to satisfy that group”.
He is a Moron.
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Well said
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Which political party should I vote for?
Which party supports our case?
Who is more likely to compensate women born in the 50s which had been robbed?
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There is not anyone to vote for, don’t you get that. SPOIL your ballot paper, get your family and friends to do it. Austerity must stop for the sake of future generations of our families. Do you think if we don’t make a political stance instead of a pathetic legal stance that they, the pampered elistists would ever, ever give the people what they are due in the future???? They will continue in their evil ways. The electorate must RISE now. Brexit is a massive smokescreen for the bullingdon bullies, Boris is a popper as well. Totally narcissistic sociopath. We must do it for our future generations, we must. My husband has mid stage dementia but he has still got a ❎ vote and he is going to do it. They have stolen my retirement pension and our last precious years together with £48,000 plus stolen by 2022. What if they decide to put it up again??? This is our chance. NOW. What the hell have we got to lose eh?
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Rose. Non of them.!!!! You won’t hear about austerity injustices against the weak or us darling in their manifestos I bet you.
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Thank you for all your time investigating this scandal x All of us 50’s babies have suffered difficulties through no fault of our own.
Neither of my parents lived long enough to collect their pensions although they paid in from ages 14 brought up 6 children who also have been paying in sadly 3 of them also have died without having a penny back from the pension pot. My sister and I were born 56 and 57 I will be 64 in January I have 4 children and a nephew (who I have bought up from the age of 8 all in employment now and paying in.
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What an embarrassing, shameful disgrace!
If we ran our homes and businesses in this profligate manner this country would be in a far worse situation than it is now. Where is the accountability for Gods sake ????
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i am a 50s women i was born in 1955 and started work at 15 i have worked all my life i have been diagnosed with sciatica due to pertruding discs in the lower region of the spine an arthiritus in my hands and feet i was never informed of the retirement age change in any shape or form i have constant back pain but still have to go to work i am in pain from waking up to going to sleep and i still dont get any comfort when i get in bed as i can hear and feel the clicking in my spine when i am lied down then i keep being woke up all night with my feet and the muscles in the back of my legs from top to bottom going into cramps i wake up every night crying and waking my husband up to try and help me to get out of bed just to see if that helps i tried claiming universal credits but because of my husbands small pension and the hours i work i am not entitled to anything we do not have the heating on cause we cant afford it we sit with coats on we get handouts from food banks and people in prison eat better than we do i even asked about the cold weather payment and the job centre said if you was entitled to it i would recieve it so obviously your not entitled to it, if anybody had a ounce of compassion for us ladies they would do something about it but they havent, i am so sick of living like this and something has to be done about it i would like to say a big thank you to everybody that is involved in trying to get us our pension back i have commented a few times i have made donations just to get this situation for us all solved but i dont know what more i can do but we all have to stick together ladies and whatever the outcome we will not be going away solodarity in number something our government has forgot about thank you all again for keeping us informed of everything that is going on you are all stars
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Pingback: Johnson slammed for wasting £137 billion of taxpayers’ cash while denying 50s women a penny in pensions compensation | Westminster Confidential | Tory Britain!
No 3 on a list of 11 pledges prospective Tory MPs have been told not to sign into during the Election campaign:
Women’s state pension age. This highly charged issue could be a significant factor for women in the general election as the age for receiving a state pension rises from 60 to 65. Boris Johnson has promised to review the change, but the memo urges candidates not to engage on the issue. “Avoid signing [pledges],” it says. “Changes to the state pension age are part of a long overdue move towards gender equality and will put the pensions system on a more sustainable footing for future generations.”
Makes my blood boil.
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This is basically saying don’t commit to anything for the 50s born women
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Of course it is. If (and they are!) they do get away with it, they have completely stitched up the whole population forever onwards. We are the test case for the miserable future of paid in pensions. I was talking or arguing yesterday with someone who is 72 male and his wife is in her 50s. I said what happens if you get sick, who will care for you? Where will her livelihood go, where will your property go to to pay for care. He’d said to me that she expects to work till she drops, but, then he started to realise even with all his money that its all on a toss of a coin if he, or she gets sick or disabled. To me thats a typical empowered older males and women also attitude where they have not yet realised the consequences of fate against a extremely uncaring government /society. The new name for the bastard Tories should be” I’m all right Jack”.
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👍
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Hear hear Lynne
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https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/tory-ministers-private-school-fees-children-diplomats-military-mod-foreign-office-a9181211.html
Another huge amount of money spent by the government l read in the Independent newspaper.
I’m sure us tax payers will be delighted to learn we also pay the private school fees and not just any boarding school but the most expensive schools in the UK!
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OH MY GOD this is absolutely atrocious the bare faced cheek. I don’t know how they can actually face the public, they have absolutely no conscience at all. Westminster needs a total clear out.
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I never knew this and it is absolutely disgusting, every day the more I read the more angry I get.
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Well said my friend…..
Take off the poorest who can’t fight back
You’re right we get the smallest pension in Europe 😡
How come no one protesting while the elections are going on .
They are trying to keep us quiet 🤬
No promises before elections
We’re fed up of there promises
The politicians should give up there free lunches….and free second houses … non of them went to prison for expenses fraud.
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Good on you,i f anyone should be in government(you should). I have work tomorrow,cleaning a nursing home,and I do mean CLEANING, I had Christmas day and boxing day off.I have just had a hand operation,I am waiting another on left hand and waiting for my third hip replacement, due to leg length issue.I have 9 diseases and 2.50 in the bank until January 30 the 20. My mobility car was taken away as pip said I don’t have much of a problem!!! If they were me in the morning, and see my struggle,they might have an idea how hard just living is.Having no money ,no car no health you call good,BUT can go to work three years after I should have been.I am worn out physically and mentally.Pip ask you questions,and when you answer, they write and tell you ( pip don’t feel that you are that way,and insult you by a,calling you a liar,b,saying you CAN walk so far etc,.So apart from being,unwell physically, mentally ,broke,a liar,the government are the worst ever,and I looked after my husband,children,mother in law with dementia and my dad in end of life and claimed nothing.. I feel as though I will just die,having done nothing for myself,which I did think was going to cone when I was 60 ,three years ago,and my family all loved and cared for. How come the government are not being sued for theft,they never said when I started work could they use my money at any point on whatever they like,I was told it was for our pension at 60.Now I paid them on a regular basis and now they have spent it .If anybody else did this ,they would be in court for THEFT, never did they ask me could they spend my money.!!!!!!
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What a dreadfully sad piece of writing to wake up to today. The Conservatives are now saying most of us 1950’s women are wealth off and really don’t need their pensions reinstated but this is clearly not the case for poor Rosemary and nor is it for me either although I am physically fit (for the moment). It was, and still is, theft pure and simple and I hope the continuing legal action will get us some restitution. Did you see that puny weasel Tim Loughton saying they MIGHT CONSIDER some tiny restitution for us but we have to agree not to pursue our legal action first. What sort of statement is that?! Blackmail? Does he really think we’re that stupid? I think he does. We may be over 60 but we’re not stupid. Let’s give this legal action everything we’ve got and try and get some peace of mind for Rosemary and the rest of us so seriously affected by the loss of the money we paid in for our pensions.
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This has to be the best and touching piece I’ve read. I’m 61 worked all my life until ten years ago I receive ESA I’m deprived of my pension which would at least give me some quality of life. I have followed this campaign from the beginning I hope and pray this government at least recognise the people who have worked and supported this country all their lives.
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Keep fighting for justice. Its about time we took away all their expences and make them live on one wage take away their second homes as well they rent them out and keep the cash. Tories should be made extinct they steal money hand over fist taxpayers money Boris Johnson and handcock should be in prison
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