A 99-year-old Second World War veteran who travelled 4,400 miles to talk to the Prime Minister about the squeeze on pensions for Britons living abroad said she was “bitterly disappointed” Sir Keir Starmer did not meet her.
Anne Puckridge is among nearly half a million UK state pensioners whose pots have been frozen at the level they were when they left the country, rather than being uprated in line with payments for those who remain in Britain.
Mrs Puckridge, who served in an air defence unit and decoded messages as an officer in the Women’s Royal Indian Naval Service during the war, currently receives £72.50 a week instead of the £169.50 she would be entitled to if she had remained in the UK.
She emigrated to Canada to be near her family in 2001. She had lived and worked in the UK until the age of 76, paying all her taxes, including national insurance.
She met Pensions Minister Emma Reynolds on Tuesday but said she was “heartbroken” to have not met Sir Keir when she hand-delivered a letter to Downing Street on Thursday.
“Whilst I was appreciative of the minister’s time, it was bitterly disappointing to hear no sign of intent to move past the same old platitudes that this policy remains too hard and too expensive to fix,” Mrs Puckridge said.
“I travelled to the UK this week hoping for sincere and meaningful dialogue but leave heartbroken by a Prime Minister who has refused to grant me a few moments of his time and his minister unwilling to meaningfully engage.”
In her latest letter to the Prime Minister, she wrote: “I wish to stress that I have travelled nearly 5,000 miles, not for myself, but for all those impacted. I was merely asking for the opportunity to outline to you personally how the policy affects us.”
Mrs Puckridge said she received a response from the Prime Minister in writing last week.
She added she remains hopeful the Prime Minister will reconsider his decision before she returns to Canada on Friday.
The petition calling on Sir Keir to meet her gathered more than 130,000 signatures and her supporters include actress and activist Dame Joanna Lumley, who previously said: “Times may be tough and challenging. But I urge the powers that be to be mindful that many of those affected by this cruel policy served Britain through even tougher times.
“I think swathes of the country will find it simply unthinkable that brave men and women such as Anne should be treated this way.
“Some of the affected pensioners, like her, served our country in its most perilous days.
“They did right by the country, so surely the country should now do right by them.”
During Wednesday’s PMQs, Gregory Stafford MP asked the Prime Minister whether he will reconsider his decision not to meet Mrs Puckridge, who listened in the public gallery.
“Will the Prime Minister reconsider his decision, and give Anne the best birthday present ever and meet her to discuss this issue,” Mr Stafford asked.
“My request to the Prime Minister, that he meet with me, is not for my personal benefit, but is a request made on behalf of more than 450,000 frozen pensioners around the world suffering as much, and in many cases far more, than me,” Mrs Puckridge previously said.
“Once so very proud of being British, I now feel ashamed of my country.”
A Government spokesperson said: “We are deeply proud of our veterans and their families for the contribution they make to our country. Theirs is the ultimate public service, and their professionalism and bravery is rightly respected across the world.
“We understand people move abroad for many reasons, and we provide clear information on how this can impact their finances in retirement – with the policy on the uprating of the UK State Pension for recipients living overseas a longstanding one.”
