UK becomes more civilized !

On Wed, 16 Nov 2005 22:46:48 -0000, "Retired"
wrote:

And lastly, my latest British Passport issued in June was 100% Free!
anybody born before the 1st September 1929 now gets a free passport.
It has to do with the War Time suffering that anybody of my generation
had to put up with!

What about those born in 1940?

War time sufferer too.
--
Martin
.................................................. .................................................. ...............

Sorry Martin, just back luck, blame your parents for not getting
organised... 8-))

Oh, another thing, of interest for the "youngsters" or non-British
my wife and I got £150 each to help pay our heating bill,
£300 does help... All that money paid direct to our Bank Account,
no lenghty form filling.

retired/uk.

"Retired" wrote in message
...

On Wed, 16 Nov 2005 22:46:48 -0000, "Retired"
wrote:

And lastly, my latest British Passport issued in June was 100% Free!
anybody born before the 1st September 1929 now gets a free passport.
It has to do with the War Time suffering that anybody of my generation
had to put up with!

What about those born in 1940?

War time sufferer too.
--
Martin

.................................................. ...........................
.......................................

Sorry Martin, just back luck, blame your parents for not getting
organised... 8-))

Oh, another thing, of interest for the "youngsters" or non-British
my wife and I got £150 each to help pay our heating bill,
£300 does help... All that money paid direct to our Bank Account,
no lenghty form filling.

Yep, it's one of the few good things about this Government.
My 90-year-old mother gets £500 from a mix of age- & Council Tax-related
add-ons.

Surreyman

a.spencer3 wrote:

"Retired" wrote in message
...
[]
Oh, another thing, of interest for the "youngsters" or non-British
my wife and I got £150 each to help pay our heating bill,
£300 does help... All that money paid direct to our Bank Account,
no lenghty form filling.

Yep, it's one of the few good things about this Government.
My 90-year-old mother gets £500 from a mix of age- & Council Tax-related
add-ons.

It's just a bandage on top of a stupid system of 'poll-tax-like' local
taxation. Council tax has risen so much in recent years, not least due
to central government cutbacks, that it is now a serious burden on many
pensioners.

--
David Horne- http://www.davidhorne.net
usenet (at) davidhorne (dot) co (dot) uk
http://homepage.mac.com/davidhornecomposer http://soundjunction.org

Following up to chancellor of the duchy of besses o' th' barn and
prestwich tesco 24h offy

Council tax has risen so much in recent years, not least due
to central government cutbacks, that it is now a serious burden on many
pensioners.

its absurd, central government keep telling local government to
do this and do that, while funding less and less from fair
taxation (income or spending related central taxes) and lumping
it onto an unjust local tax.
--
Mike Reid
Walk-eat-photos UK "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" -- you can email us@ this site
Walk-eat-photos Spain "http://www.fell-walker.co.uk" -- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap

"chancellor of the duchy of besses o' th' barn and prestwich tesco 24h offy"
wrote in message
news:1h6ddyi.oz1c4nfrypfrN%this_address_is_for_spa ...
a.spencer3 wrote:

"Retired" wrote in message
...
[]
Oh, another thing, of interest for the "youngsters" or non-British
my wife and I got £150 each to help pay our heating bill,
£300 does help... All that money paid direct to our Bank Account,
no lenghty form filling.

Yep, it's one of the few good things about this Government.
My 90-year-old mother gets £500 from a mix of age- & Council Tax-related
add-ons.

It's just a bandage on top of a stupid system of 'poll-tax-like' local
taxation. Council tax has risen so much in recent years, not least due
to central government cutbacks, that it is now a serious burden on many
pensioners.


Oh sure - don't even get me on that one!
From a total of around £130 per week income (state pension plus private
pension) my mother (90, widow) pays over £1,000 p.a. Council Tax!
Total disgrace.

Surreyman

Following up to a.spencer3

Oh sure - don't even get me on that one!
From a total of around £130 per week income (state pension plus private
pension) my mother (90, widow) pays over £1,000 p.a. Council Tax!
Total disgrace.

the joke is, your mother is the classic example given of the
person hit by badly designed local taxation systems, they have
had rates, poll tax and council tax, all three systems are bad
for that kind of person! All that poll tax achieved was a big
present for the rich in the manor house and council tax is a sort
of average of the two systems.
And then, at least as silly, they put off the revaluation on the
scare story it will put up charges.
--
Mike Reid
Walk-eat-photos UK "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" -- you can email us@ this site
Walk-eat-photos Spain "http://www.fell-walker.co.uk" -- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap

"The Reid" wrote in message
...
Following up to chancellor of the duchy of besses o' th' barn and
prestwich tesco 24h offy

Council tax has risen so much in recent years, not least due
to central government cutbacks, that it is now a serious burden on many
pensioners.

its absurd, central government keep telling local government to
do this and do that, while funding less and less from fair
taxation (income or spending related central taxes) and lumping
it onto an unjust local tax.
--
Mike Reid
.................................................. .................................................. ..............

I agree with every thing you say, Gordon Brown has been passing on
more and more of the costs that used to be paid by our previous govmts.
What amazes me, is it that the People are taking so long to realise it.

My original point was that - as a British pensioner - with all the bits and
bobs - my wife and I
may be better off than my elderly sister in France.

Her local rates are also going up faster than inflation, her Doctors fees
are
going up regularly... but the amount refunded by the State is not...
ditto for the Chemists.
Like all French residents she (& her husband) contributed
all her life to a private or Company "Mutuelle" that used to make-up the
difference between what the Doctor or the Chemist charged AND
what the French NHS refunded. Unfortunately in both these cases, the
refunds are shrinking, as the outgoings are increasing.

And her Council hasn't yet budgeted for the recent destruction of schools,
nurseries, shops and car showrooms.

retired/uk.

(who resides in the Council that charges the highest rates in the UK!).

Following up to Retired

I agree with every thing you say, Gordon Brown has been passing on
more and more of the costs that used to be paid by our previous govmts.
What amazes me, is it that the People are taking so long to realise it.

Its not a Gordon Brown or New Labour issue. Governments have been
manipulating rate support grant (cant remember what its called
now) for years. Thatcher fiddled it to such a degree in London
that Tory Wandsworth and Westminster hardly had to raise a rate
at all. IIRC at one point Westminster was getting nearly all the
money earmarked for flood relief! The calculation was very
complex, using multiple regression analysis, i'll leave you to
decide why it needed to be so complex.
The public think local taxation pays for local services and blame
the council, so government sees it as a good way to cutting
central spending and someone else getting the blame.
--
Mike Reid
Walk-eat-photos UK "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" -- you can email us@ this site
Walk-eat-photos Spain "http://www.fell-walker.co.uk" -- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap