British Pensioners (Overseas) (Hansard, 19 October 1999)

§ Mr. Nigel Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what assessment he has made of the impact on British citizens of the decision of the Australian Government to cease its topping-up procedures to compensate British citizens of pensionable age who live in Australia and whose United Kingdom pension entitlement is frozen. [93741]

§ Mr. Rooker
The Australian Government announced in July that it intended to terminate the bilateral Social Security Agreement with the United Kingdom. We have 559W not received formal notice of termination. The Agreement would terminate 12 months after formal notice was received.
The Agreement has a bearing on UK pensioners in Australia only if they have lived there for less than 10 years. It helps them to satisfy Australia's 10-year residence test for its Age Pension. UK pension is deducted from any Age Pension due. About 3,000 UK pensioners in Australia receive Age Pension with the help of the Agreement. They would be unaffected by termination, as anyone already entitled to benefit with the help of the Agreement when it terminated would continue to be covered by its terms.
If the Agreement is terminated, UK pensioners would have to have lived in Australia for 10 years before they could become entitled to Age Pension.
Age Pension is subject to a test of income and assets, so the amount any pensioner receives, or whether they qualify at all, depends on their financial circumstances.

§ Mr. Nigel Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many British citizens living abroad have had their United Kingdom pension entitlement frozen. [93742]

§ Mr. Rooker
At present, of the 870,000 UK State Pensions paid to people living abroad, some 470,000 are frozen. That is, annual upratings are not paid after the date the person becomes entitled to the pension, or the date on which they left the UK if that is later.

§ Mr. Nigel Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will assess the cost of abolishing the provisions which freeze pension entitlement for British citizens living abroad; and if he will make a statement. [93743]

§ Mr. Rooker
The total annual cost of uprating all frozen UK basic State pensions paid overseas to the rate paid to pensioners resident in the UK would be some £300 million.