Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Ex-pat pensioners suffer consequences of Brexit
When people talk about immigration in the context of the European Union they sometimes forget the millions of UK citizens who live on the continent, 220,000 of whom are pensioners and a large number of whom will be adversely affected by Brexit.
This issue was highlighted yesterday in the Guardian, when they reported on the proceedings of the House of Lords EU justice sub-committee. Note this inquiry is being carried out by unelected peers, not by the MPs who are meant to represent these pensioners:
Jeremy Morgan QC said retirees in the EU living exclusively or almost exclusively on British pensions have already suffered a decrease in their income because of the depreciation in sterling since the referendum.
They were hit by a second blow last month when the government revealed it would not give a lifetime guarantee to index-link their pensions if the UK crashed out of the EU without a deal.
“There is real hardship. The impression sometimes given by the tabloid press is that everyone on pension age living in the EU is supping prosecco on a terrace in Tuscany or something like that.
“There are huge numbers of people who made a very rational decision years ago to move because they could afford to move because they could make their pension go a bit further in countries like rural France or in Spain and they are in desperate straits because of this,” Morgan told peers on the House of Lords EU justice sub-committee.
One of the biggest concerns for these pensioners is that their health care will no longer be covered in the event of a no-deal Brexit. This should be a concern for the UK Government too. If Britain pays for the healthcare of its pensioners abroad it would cost roughly half what it would cost for them to come back here and be treated by the NHS.
I wonder if the Prime Minister has even thought about the impact his policies will have on these pensioners.
This issue was highlighted yesterday in the Guardian, when they reported on the proceedings of the House of Lords EU justice sub-committee. Note this inquiry is being carried out by unelected peers, not by the MPs who are meant to represent these pensioners:
Jeremy Morgan QC said retirees in the EU living exclusively or almost exclusively on British pensions have already suffered a decrease in their income because of the depreciation in sterling since the referendum.
They were hit by a second blow last month when the government revealed it would not give a lifetime guarantee to index-link their pensions if the UK crashed out of the EU without a deal.
“There is real hardship. The impression sometimes given by the tabloid press is that everyone on pension age living in the EU is supping prosecco on a terrace in Tuscany or something like that.
“There are huge numbers of people who made a very rational decision years ago to move because they could afford to move because they could make their pension go a bit further in countries like rural France or in Spain and they are in desperate straits because of this,” Morgan told peers on the House of Lords EU justice sub-committee.
One of the biggest concerns for these pensioners is that their health care will no longer be covered in the event of a no-deal Brexit. This should be a concern for the UK Government too. If Britain pays for the healthcare of its pensioners abroad it would cost roughly half what it would cost for them to come back here and be treated by the NHS.
I wonder if the Prime Minister has even thought about the impact his policies will have on these pensioners.
