Monday, July 01, 2013

That didn’t last

Last year was the first time Pam and I were able to claim the Winter Fuel Allowance that others have been receiving for years. We had hoped that the allowance, which amounts to 100 pound each, would be paid every year from now on but the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne has other ideas.  He plans to stop the allowance to those expats who live in warmer countries than Britain from 2015. The saving to Britain is estimated at 30 million pounds per year.

I can understand the desire to save money but the scheme is flawed. After all, it is normally colder in the north of England than it is in the south so is he going to reduce payments to those living in say Bournemouth?  

I’d like to know which countries are going to be declared colder than Britain and on what evidence will this judgement be made? Mr Osborne, there are parts of Spain where the winters are worse than Britain and this year it was damn cold here on the Costa Blanca. The words, mealy mouthed followed by several expletives come to mind.

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