sandyf

Obviously you have no idea how the UK state pension was structured. The government relies on the this ignorance to perpetrate thee discrimination.

Take it you believe he wrote the 2019 manifesto on his own as well.

Indeed, regular disruptions similar to Heathrow could be the way forward here.

They don't have to. Over 70s can come through the Thai passport channels and now they have the auto gates there is very few at the kiosks. When I came back a fortnight ago only one in front of me. Going out was even quicker, straight through an auto gate.

Indeed, thanks. I only had a look to see who was still participating and looks like the APPG has been discontinued.

More twists that a bowl of spaghetti. Nothing, regarding the state pension, has been "that way" for more than 70 years. A population that supports discrimination should be hanging it's head in shame.

The Labour Party have today formally announced that they will support the APPG in its efforts to annul the Social Security Benefit Up-rating Regulations. http://frozenbritishpensions.org/jeremy-corbyn-gives-labours-backing-pension-unfreezing/ Surprise! Surprise! Frozen British Pensions APPG First Registered: 29/09/2015 • Last updated on: 30/05/2024 Note: This APPG was last registered on 30th May 2024. The APPG was not registered in the latest release of the 9th October 2024 and may be defunct. Perhaps you are looking for the British Muslims APPG? https://www.parallelparliament.co.uk/APPG/frozen-british-pensions

That is not true. What the judge said was that there so many benefits paid from NI that an exclusive link between the pension and NI could not be established. The comment was made in 2009 and by that time the government had deliberately used NI to fund other benefits to try and break the link between NI and the pension. If the judge had done his own homework rather than listening to the UK government he would have seen that was not the case in the beginning. The Court did not consider that it sufficed for the applicants to have paid National Insurance contributions in the United Kingdom to place them in a relevantly similar position to all other pensioners, regardless of their country of residence. Claiming the contrary would be based on a misconception of the relationship between National Insurance contributions and the State pension. Unlike private pension schemes, National Insurance contributions had no exclusive link to retirement pensions. Instead, they formed a part of the revenue which paid for a whole range of social security benefits, including incapacity benefits, maternity allowances, widow’s benefits, bereavement benefits and the National Health Service. The complex and interlocking system of the benefits and taxation systems made it impossible to isolate the payment of National Insurance contributions as a sufficient ground for equating the position of pensioners who received uprating and those, like the applicants, who did not. chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN01457/SN01457.pdf

That used to be the case but it did became automatic, possibly during covid.

Believe it or not, but there are several different circumstances that apply to pensioners in Thailand. From what you said, it is quite likely that he benefitted from a discriminatory policy within the state pension arrangement, losing much less than those in other circumstances.

You are wrong, it has not been that way for more than 70 years. Reciprocal agreements are nothing more than a government smokescreen to cover up incompetance and legalised fraud. Who decides if there should be a reciprocal agreement or not? When brexit came along the reciprocal agreement with the EU came to an end, what happened? The government claim the policy has been successfully challenged in court, that is a distortion of the facts. The 2002 court case was brought about under human rights legislation, the policy has never been challenged in court under current equality laws. The government published the equality act and dealt with the fallout as it arose, the trans community probably the most notable. The problem with frozen pensioners is that they are not in the UK, spread around the world with no unified voice and the government relies on the unlikelyhood of a legal challenge. Also a large percentage of the UK population has benefitted significantly from state pension discrimination so they will tend to defend the government position. Only last week in one of the annual events MPs from across the political spectrum quite rightly vocalised their praise and gratitude to the armed forces. Every year when the Social Security Act comes before parliament those hypocrites vote for an arrangement that denies military veterans a full state pension. Over the years there has been attempts during the debate to address the discriminatory policy, but that has been suppressed by the government of the day. In 2019 the Labour Party stated the discrimination was unacceptable and gave their support to the APPG recomendations and included proposed changes in their manifesto. Now in power they now believe the discrimination is no longer unacceptable, and like yourself and others quite happy to continue the perpretation.

Obviously you believe historical precedence justifies discrimination. RR wouldn't be allowed to vote, far less have a job in government, if a long standing arrangement hadn't been overturned. In the 2019 Labour party manifesto on page 76 they pledged to equalise overseas pensions. It would appear that the discrimination can only be seen by Labour when in opposition.

The ignorance surrounding the UK state pension never ceases to amaze. I doubt you are even aware of the policy changes that took place in 1961 and 1975, then overturned in 2016.

Distorted post. Title refers to State pension and text goes on about investment returns. The state pension is a pay-as-you-go arrangement that was intended to be funded from NI contibutions. The government shot themselves in the foot through misappropriation of NI and now have to fund the shortfall from income tax.

A lot depends on where you are staying, you cannot rely on getting transport later on. One year we made the mistake of staying in a hotel on north road and going to Sailor Bar, they used to put on a variety show but just music now, We couldn't get a taxi back, all full up from the pier, ended up on a motorbike. Last year a friend of mine said the beach between Soi 13 and Walking Street was relatively quiet and the north end around the Holiday Inn is usually quite free. The larger hotels in that area tend to include dinner and show on NY so customers stay inside. With children I would strongly recommend you stay away from the Walking Street entrance and the beach around the Pattaya Klang junction. If you go to New Plaza leave early, the crowd will start moving about 11pm.

Back in 2005 I dropped phone in taxi on way to the airport. Following morning sat by a pool in HCMC my then girlfriend took a call. It was the taxi driver calling the last number called on the phone. Reunited with the phone a few weeks later, not sure if Mr T's taxis are still on the go.

I has varied over the years with fireworks being the main event. Beach parties were a popular thing and there used to be a variety of bars with shows but not so much these days. There is now a fairly large music event held in New Plaza as well as the music event at Bali Hai Pier, that is not for the faint hearted, extremely crowded. Covid brought it all to a halt and we went to Koh Chang in 2021 and 22 which was more open. Last year was the first fully open NY since covid and the crowds on the beach in Soi 8 area were horrendous, All those from New Plaza had just poured down Soi 8 on to the beach, best to avoid that part of the beach. The official fireworks are done at Bali Hai but there are fireworks going off all around, mainly from the big hotels. If you are tempted to view from a rooftop bar, be warned they keep the numbers down with highly inflated prices. This was Pattaya beach about 10.30pm on New Years Eve 2020.

I was 13K to have a BCC removed from my ear at a government hospital last year. Surgeon did an excellent job but Bang Saen probably a bit far for you.

Thread title is about relative prices, not marital status. Generally Bangkok has always been more expensive than the Pattaya area, but on saying that I can only go back 25 years, may have been different in the days of R&R.

Agreed. Easy to pick a few things in a particular area that may be cheaper but take a good cross section from across both and you will see a big difference.

Are you really trying to say that out of the whole US population that only a duck under investigation could stand up for the Republican point of view. The whole fiasco is a bit like a horse race where the winner doesn't have to take a dope test.

It would appear there is some DOJ policy of not prosecuting sitting presidents. Maybe Trump put it in place last time round.

Indeed, big time. The DOJ are now looking to drop the outstanding charges against him. Who does that make sense to?

Could be regional. I have done the online after re-entry many times but this year(Sept) the online was rejected with a message to say first application after re-entry is to be done in person. Bit of a pain as my extension being a first on a new visa was also a 90 day, so effectively a report in person. Problem probably that it was done in the room next door.

Indeed. Who would have thought the American people would become the most powerful weapon in the BRICS arsenal.