State pension payments slashed to 'half' for some retirees in cruel and 'discriminatory' policy

State pensioners are facing a harsh blow to their cost of living as their payments have been cut to "half" as we approach Christmas. State pensioners are receiving "half" of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) state pension due to their location.

Anne Puckridge, who is nearing her 100th birthday and served in all three branches of the armed forces, receives less than half of the state pension she is entitled to. She is among those affected by frozen state pensions, which impacts retirees who relocate to certain countries, including some within the Commonwealth.

Despite living and working in the UK until the age of 76 and paying her National Insurance in full, Anne's pension was 'frozen' at £72.50 per week when she moved to Canada in 2001 to be closer to her daughter and grandchildren. Her pension does not increase with inflation, meaning it effectively decreases in real value each year.

If she had remained in the UK, she would be receiving state pension payments worth £169.50 per week. Anne, now residing in Canada, is planning to return to the UK due to this "discriminatory" policy.

John Duguid, Chair of the End Frozen Pensions campaign, warned: "This Budget does nothing to help the nearly half a million overseas UK state pensioners consistently denied all of the annual increases in the state pension despite paying all their National Insurance dues.", reports Birmingham Live.

He continued: "One such pensioner is soon to be 100 year old WW2 veteran Anne Puckridge, who is undertaking the 4,400-mile journey from her home in Canada in December to lobby MPs and challenge the Prime Minister to a meeting."

Anne has condemned the frozen pension policy as "discriminatory" and is seeking a meeting with Chancellor Rachel Reeves. John stated: "Every single one of us forgotten British overseas pensioners impacted by this cruel, outdated policy are immensely indebted to Anne for shedding light on this poorly understood scandal."

"That she is prepared to travel halfway across the world, aged nearly 100, to fight for others is a testament to her relentless drive and profound sense that it should not be this way."