There are Liars, Damned Liars, and the manipulation of statistics
by the UK Dept of Work & Pensions
by the UK Dept of Work & Pensions
encouraged by the Daily Mail
THE WINTER FUEL PAYMENT
Truth about Winters in Europe –
British Elderly Citizens in Europe
are Cold. Cold cold…..
“Just as I was yesterday, I am typing
Emails sitting up in bed. I am fully clothed in three jumpers, two pairs
of trousers and a track suit. My dear husband, similarly dressed, is
tucked up beside me
“I am having to survive on my pension of £5300 per
year. I have several friends here who all get the allowance (THE WFP) – note she did not.
“when we arrived in France aged 60, we
were in good health. However, as the years go on, many of us are beset by
various illnesses and the frailty of old age. I have had several
operations and many investigations in hospital for various internal and
ophthalmic problems. My husband had a hip replacement three years ago and
two other operations since then. He was diagnosed with lung cancer a year
ago, for which he is being treated with chemotherapy. I am, of course, at
the age of 77, his only carer. To read more go to http://www.lefourquet.net/Hardup-dossier.doc
France
and Spain and
of course the rest of Europe are frequently colder than Britain
in Winter . Britain
‘enjoys’ the warming effect of the Gulf Stream
See this map for 3.00 a.m. on the 30th December 2014
(map complied at the Climate Unit- the University
of Maine – published every day)
What follows is an edited form of a deeper analysis of the
manipulation by the DWP, of the true statistics by a colleague Roger Boaden –
The original is here www.lefourquet.net/HOT&COLD.docx
The untruths of the Dept of Work and Pensions.
The DWP claim that France
and Spain are HOT
countries in the winter!
The Daily Mail reports and
relishes, nay even gloats over the plight of British Citizen Pensioners in France
and Spain - visit www.lefourquet.net/DailyMailWFP12-14.docx
How the DWP promotes its untruths.
The UK’s
Met Office produced a report (Dec 2012) for the Department for Work &
Pensions (DWP), which listed temperatures for the countries identified above,
as follows:
Ireland: 5.5°C
United
Kingdom: 4.1°C SW England: 5.6°C
Italy: 5.7°C
France: 4.9°C
France
after
Adjustment: 7.0°C + including tropical island temperatures from
Caribbean & Indian Ocean
Spain: 7.2°C
Spain
after
Adjustment: 7.3°C + including the archipelago of the Canary Islands
[NOTE WELL -- all of the
above listed temperatures fall below 8°C]
This figure of 8.0°C is significant. A UK Government
publication, ‘Cold Weather Plan for England 2014’ states the following: ‘…. the negative health effects of cold weather start to occur
at relatively moderate mean outdoor temperatures (5-8°C depending on region),
and days at these temperatures occur much more frequently than days where the
temperature is 2°C or less.’ And then the Cold Weather Plan goes on to
say: ‘Heating your home to at least 18°C is particularly important if
you have reduced mobility, are 65 and over, or have a health condition, such as
heart or lung disease. Having room temperatures slightly over 18°C could be
good for your health.’
So how come some countries have been declared ‘Hot’?
The statements in above cited official UK Government
Publication are clear - if you have outdoor temperatures of less than 8°C, then
you need indoor heating to
the level of 18°C! That same assessment
concerning risks to health must surely be applicable for ALL British
Pensioners wherever they may live!
Not it seems, a view shared by the DWP! Ministers have declared France
and Spain as
‘hot’ countries where elderly British Pensioners do not need heat during the
winter months. The word ‘hot’ is just
not true. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Iain Duncan Smith, and
the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, have both made statements
concerning the Winter Fuel Payments, which said: “… people in hot countries will no longer get it. It is, after all, a payment
for winter fuel.” How do you heat a home without winter
fuel? The elderly in France
and Spain and
further off in Europe need winter heating!
So, how is Winter defined?
The DWP decided that the temperatures they have used, had to
be based on their definition of
winter of 1 November to 31st March - 151 days - instead of the normal definition of winter, which is
recognised right across the World as December to February (DJF) - 90 days. One quarter of the year
DWP has classified as ‘hot’ an average winter temperature of
7.0°C covering the complete period of 151
days. In order for such a level of
average temperatures to be realised, there will be many days on which
temperatures fall well below that level of 7.0 degrees during five months! And, as a direct consequence, the overall
average is in fact increased, making it appear warmer.
What lies behind this decision of the DWP?
Is it not obvious, that the policy objective of Iain Duncan
Smith, was to remove Winter Fuel Payments from the maximum possible number of
British Pensioners. British Pensioners are British Pensioners, wherever they
may live, and they should all be treated in exactly the same way, and with an
equality of care!
British Expat Pensioners are a far too easy a target for
Ministers to attack, and we can see from the sustained policy over a period of
two years, how Ministers and officials sought to denigrate them. Newspapers like the Daily Mail have been only
too happy to run headlines which poke fun and sneer at those who have chosen to
live in places which will give them a few more hours of sunshine in their
twilight years. And anyway, not all
British Pensioners live on the Mediterranean - the majority
live inland and with substantive regional differences,
they experience some pretty severe weather from time to time. Iain Duncan Smith and his colleagues at the
DWP have used, what can only be described as a deceitful and cruel policy, to
achieve their objectives!
As a result, they have breached the rights of British citizen
choosing to live elsewhere in the European Union, under the EU Regulation 883/2004, and are
in contravention of Judgments of the CJEU in Newton (C-356/89) and in Stewart (C-503/09).
This
is discrimation against British Citizens on the basis of falsified country wide
average temperatures (achieved especially in the case of France by incorporating
temperatures of tropical islands). A
temperature discrimination is not used for residents in the UK. Therefore there is no uniformity of treatment
across the EU for the British Pensioner citizen. The UK Government is grossly discriminating
in its treatment of its own nationals.
That many who reside in upland and inland areas of several countries are
left to go without. They appear to be of
no concern to the British Government.
What can you do to help – Tweet or retweet this. http://www.lefourquet.net/Liarsetc.doc
Tweet
to Matt Chorley the author of the Daily Mail article. @MattChorley
Post
on Facebook.
Write
to or send this item to your MP
addresses are at
To
the DWP [Iain Duncun Smith] – ministers@dwp.gsi.gov.uk
As a guide to find MPs and MEPs
use your last post code in the UK.
