sambum

Maybe the neighbour who was letting him use his address?

I personally know of a couple who were living in Thailand, but had to return to the UK for a tribunal because they didn't declare where they were living, and were expecting to have to repay about £5000 of overpayments between them. However, once the boss of the tribunal found out that the husband had "served his country" in the RAF, he told them that they would not be getting any more increments, but would not have to repay the "overpayments". They have since returned to the UK, but that is the only instance that I have heard of in 20 years here, and I know a few people who have been "bucking the system" for years.

"Revealing attire"? Can't see nuffin' and nothing "blurred out"! 😀

Various prospective MP's have stated pre election that they "will certainly look into it", but after the election - "swept under the carpet" - again! Extract from Labour Manifesto 2019 - Page 76:- "Pensions People work hard for most of their lives and deserve a decent retirement free of f inancial stress and insecurity. .............. "We will maintain the ‘triple lock’ and guarantee the Winter Fuel Payment, free TV licences and free bus passes as universal benefits. ........ " We will ensure that the pensions of UK citizens living overseas rise in line with pensions in Britain." OH, YEAH?

Couldn't agree more!

Yes, and the money spent on immigrants, which increases every year, and is in the BILLIONS could quite easily pay for the cost of unfreezing pensions for expats who have at least made contributions into the system!

"However, Thailand’s advocacy group for ending frozen UK pensions argues that the issue of fraud is minor. A representative claimed that the primary issues are DWP processing errors and the discriminatory policy denying pension increases to expats based on location. Neither the previous Conservative nor the current Labour government has addressed these concerns." I get a monthly pension from my ex employer, and get an annual increment in line with or above inflation, but they aren't bothered where I live, and even actively encourage pensioners to "widen their horizons". On the other hand, the British Government (Tories and Labour) continually sweep this "discriminatory policy" under the carpet, and seem more intent on looking after illegal immigrants and spending BILLIONS every year on foreign aid, ("In 2023, the UK spent $19.11 billion on Official Development Assistance (ODA), which includes domestic spending on refugee programs") than looking after their own "home grown" citizens who have spent their entire working lives in the UK. "The cost of unfreezing UK state pensions for expats is estimated to be in the billions of pounds:2023/24: £860 million" So, to recap, the cost of foreign aid costs the UK $19.11 BILLION PER YEAR, (Plus the cost of housing legal and illegal immigrants which is also in the BILLIONS of pounds per year i.e."The UK spent £15.374 BILLION on asylum seekers and refugees in 2023, which was 0.58% of the UK's gross national income (GNI). This was an increase of 16.4% from 2022. The UK's aid budget for 2023 was £15.4 billion, which was £2.6 billion more than the previous year.") Whereas the cost of unfreezing pensions for expats would be £860 MILLION PER YEAR. Doesn't seem fair does it? Especially as additionally, those expats are saving the UK economy millions of pounds every year through not having free medical treatment on the NHS, or other benefits? (And I have already heard the arguments that "We should have thought of frozen pensions before retiring to whichever country we chose", or, "It's not our money - it's the current taxpayers that would be paying for the increments".)

"There is no report on whether Daniel’s Thai business partner was involved in the criminal activity. Police have not planned to summon the Thai national for questioning, according to Channel 7’s report." Hmmm?

He has issued a report, but I wonder how long (if ever) the industry will do anything about it? As usual, no doubt backs will be turned at the appearance of a brown envelope - in the same way as in the recent bus blaze that killed numerous students and teachers due to "faulty installation".

Yes, but just as a matter of interest, he was executed on 18 June 2018 (aged 26), which you omitted from your post.

Obvious - stupid question!

Why not? We are told it's a "family friendly resort" Maybe Mum got refused a job so she spat the dummy out? 🙂

Russian and Armenian? Not a good combination! OK - racist comment - I'll get my coat!

Maybe the Thai driver didn't like the tattoos? Doesn't take much for a Thai to react violently in a case such as this - people watching - loss of face?

This kind of thing happens far too often, and there are probably a multitude more of unreported cases. The authorities need to make examples of a few of these licensed child batterers by the strongest punishments possible - only then will these teachers realise that they are accountable after all. Up to now it seems that they are given a "free rein" to bully their students, and many such acts are swept under the carpet as the school does not want to be seen in a bad light (The old "face" thing). Personally, I would think that if a school takes strong action against these adult bullies, it would actually show the school in a GOOD light, and show parents that their children are in good hands.

Maybe said "Go away and leave me alone - I'm not interested in men!"

"You have to hand it to them though, they have some balls attacking men in the street like that!" You got the bit in the middle right!

Blame TAT - they want to boost their figures (again!) The accompanying headline post suggests 6 million European tourists in 2024!

"Others supported the transwomen, remarking that many “bad foreigners” come to Phuket nowadays." Try telling TAT to stop asking them to come then!

"The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) reports anticipations of welcoming 9.6 million long-haul tourists this year, aiming for over 896 billion baht in revenue with next year’s target." Whenever you see the words "Tourist Authority Of Thailand (TAT)", you will notice that they are always followed by words like "expects", "aims for", "anticipates", "hopes for", "expects" and then some figures that are wild "guesstimations". What makes me splutter in my morning coffee is that these posts are often accompanied by other posts stating that resorts like Phuket are complaining about having too many tourists! Regarding attracting 8 million tourists from Europe, I think someone should remind TAT that people in the likes of the UK will be struggling to pay their food and Utility bills in the winter of 2024, and holidays are probably the last thing they are planning for! Or maybe they are "anticipating" millions of Russians and Ukrainians escaping from the war? "In the Winter of '65, we were hungry, just barely alive" (The Band - The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down")

Very true!

I agree with you to a certain extent about some of the homeless treating it as a lifestyle/personal choice, but there are many more that are in that situation not through choice but by circumstances beyond their control (In the UK anyway) and I do not like to see them all being tarred with the same brush. I have my own opinion on the multitude of reasons for this, but I would be "hijacking" this particular thread, which is about the American Election, so we'll have to leave it there. As regards the Conservative Party ("Tories") and the Labour Party, I think that you could say that loosely your equivalent would be "Republicans" and "Democrats". The Tories traditionally represent the middle class/better off, and the Labour Party is supposedly the party that represents the ordinary working man/lower class. However, our new Labour Government are not exactly acting as many people think they should, as some of their recent decisions seem to fly in the face of their Manifesto! (I won't go into it!) Anyway, like you, I do not have a great knowledge of American politics, but I am rather bemused when a recently convicted criminal can be even considered as a candidate, let alone be the President of your country!

In the UK we had a Tory politician say a while ago that "homelessness was a lifestyle choice"! Where do these people come from? The planet Zarcon? There were various replies to her comment, mostly unprintable, but when you have people with that blinkered opinion of how the "lower classes" live, it is probably one of the reasons why they lost the last election. (Mind you, the new lot aren't much better, but as this is a post about American politics I will "zip it"!) replacement

"....only UK Government related pensions (not state pension) is free of tax in Thailand." Are they not the same thing, or by "UK Government related pensions" do you mean something like a Civil Service pension, or a Serviceman's pension?

Is it true that to serve 2 terms in office as the President of the USA, you have to be a convicted criminal/felon before you can serve your second term? 😃