e-mail Paul Lewis on paul@deadline.demon.co.uk
Saga's campaign to get fair treatment for war pensioners from local councils is going from strength to strength. Three more councils have now changed their policy following our campaign. The biggest prize of all is Rotherham in South Yorkshire. It is - or was - one of the worst local councils on our list. It reduced the help given to war veterans with their rent or council tax by as much as the law allowed. It was one of 30 councils on our 'ugly' list and now it has changed its policy.
In a statement issued just before Christmas the council announced that it had decided "in principle" that war pensions would not affect the amount of housing benefit or council tax benefit which it paid. Deputy council leader Cllr Garvin Reed said the cost would be around £120,000 a year and "it is likely that this will be met from the Anti-Poverty Fund. The council discussed this at length and I am pleased that the local authority they have decided to relax their view on this matter".
The details will be decided when the council agrees its budget for 1996/97 but we expect about 150 war veterans and widows to benefit. Ted Maddison, a British Legion member who has campaigned hard in neighbouring Barnsley and has been threatened with jail for his activities, told Saga Magazine
"It's great news. This success is definitely down to Saga and your campaign. If we break one then I think we've cracked the others. Barnsley is getting a lot of bad publicity and they don‘t like it. I‘m sure they'll pack it in too soon."
Two other councils have also changed their policy. Stevenage in Hertfordshire was one of 79 councils on our 'bad' list. Although it did not penalise war disablement pensioners, it gave as little help as the law allowed to war widows. But from January 1 this year any income a war widow gets from her war pension will be ignored completely when help with rent or council tax is worked out.
A similar change has been announced for veterans in Great Grimsby on Humberside. Grimsby also treated war widows badly. But from April 1 Grimsby will become part of the new unitary authority of North East Lincolnshire which has decided to ignore all war pensions, including widows', when working out council benefits.
Tom House of the Royal British Legion said
"These changes are the chink in the armour. More and more MPs are taking an interest. It would only cost £2 to £3 million to extend this scheme nationally."
Unfortunately the Government disagrees. Its officials put the cost at around £50 million and when the Legion raised the matter with the Minister responsible at a regular meeting about war pensions he gave a negative response.
Until there is a national scheme funded centrally Saga will continue to press councils to change their policy. Next month we will be looking more closely at the councils which treat war pensioners badly and asking just what do they spend their money on?
e-mail Paul Lewis on paul@deadline.demon.co.uk