• Pay of Charity Executives to be limited that of an MP.
    Charities are in a privileged position and contributors expect the cash they volunteer to go to the charitable cause, not inflate the pay packet of administrators. If you limit the maximum pay to that of a Member of Parliament-which is still three times the average pay of an employed worker, people would feel that more of their contributions were spent on the cause they support.
    8 of 100 Signatures
    Created by David Kinnear
  • Stop Freezing Overseas State Pensions
    The continued exclusion of overseas pensioners from up-rating adjustments to their State Pensions means that the real terms incomes of those affected falls year-on-year. Over time this leads to hardship, poverty, loss of independence and loneliness. Some individuals have been forced to return to the UK, away from loved ones, just to get by. This policy also creates a barrier to pensioner emigration from the UK, as the prospect of a frozen pension means that many feel they simply couldn't afford to do so. Given the countries involved are largely in the Commonwealth, those in British Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities are disproportionately impacted. There is no dispute about the entitlement to receive a State Pension overseas. All British pensioners who have made the required NI contributions during their working life are eligible. The issue at stake is whether that pension is universally uprated or not. At the moment, the government's policy is inconsistent and unfair, with half British pensioners abroad getting up-rated and the other half excluded. This creates crazy anomalies i.e. uprating in the USA, frozen pensions in Canada. It is time for reform to give all pensioners the full state pension they deserve, wherever they live, and to end this injustice once and for all. A positive, and easily affordable, step forward would be for the Government to include all pensioners in the 2.7% State Pension up-rating to be granted this year, by withdrawing the Social Security Benefits Up-rating Regulations 2016 currently before parliament. CASE STUDIES: Anne Puckridge Former college lecturer Anne Puckridge, now 91, lived and worked in the UK all her working life, paying mandatory NI contributions throughout this time. In 2002, aged 77 she finally retired and decided to move to Canada to be with her daughter and grandchildren who had moved to Calgary in the 1990s. Fourteen years on, Anne, who served as an intelligence officer in the Women’s Royal Navy in the Second World War, is struggling to live on the frozen £75.50 a week rate, she was entitled to when she moved abroad. Anne now feels that she will be forced to move back to Britain, because her pension will no longer cover day to day expenses and she is increasingly reliant on her daughter to get by. Anne says: “It’s the small things, and the injustice, that is really getting to me. I value my independence, but I can’t go on living on the breadline and I don’t want to inflict this on my family. As well as ever-increasingly poverty, I feel a sense of stress and shame, which is affecting my health.” Abhik Bonnerjee Abhik Bonnerjee, now 73, moved from India to Glasgow in 1960. He worked in the UK for 38 years, in shipbuilding, steel manufacture and the food industry. He owned an Indian restaurant for 6 years. Abhik returned to India in 1997 and reached the State Pension retirement age in 2008 when it was paid at £87.30 a week. Having made all the required NI contributions, if Abhik still in the UK today he would get £115.95, 28% more. The decline in his real terms income has left Abhik concerned about losing his home. He now feels he may have to move back to the UK. Abhik says: “The current situation makes me very, very angry. The government are scaremongering… [The Minister] says it will cost a lot of money but it is only a tiny percentage [of the pensions budget]. The government should be doing more, especially for Commonwealth countries and MPs can’t explain why they are not.” Rita Young Rita Young, 78, lives in Peterborough in the UK. She retired in 2002, aged 67, having enjoyed a long career in market research and as a community volunteer. Rita’s son moved to work in Australia some time ago and now has a family there. Since being widowed Rita has wanted to join her son and grandchildren in Australia, but has felt unable to do so due to the prospect of a frozen pension. As she gets older Rita finds daily life increasingly difficult, especially as she doesn’t have a family around who she can call on. She is deeply saddened that she is not able to be with her family during the later stages of her life, and feels that it is a complete injustice that had her son moved to a different country (e.g. France or the USA) she would be able join him with a full UK pension. Rita has spoken at the National Pensioners Convention about the issue and is very active in her community. Rita says: “I worked and contributed to my State Pension all my life. It doesn't seem fair that the government can just stop uprating it because I want to be with my family.” Geoff Amatt Geoff Amatt from Abergele in Wales reached 100 last year. Geoff contributed to the UK economy all his life and fought for his country during the Second World War. Geoff’s daughter Jean emigrated to Calgary, Canada more than 40 years ago, yet Geoff was unable to follow in the knowledge that his State Pension would be frozen at the rate of leaving the country. £29 per week at the time. As a result Geoff has been separated from his two grandchildren and two great grandchildren throughout his retirement. He has lived alone, largely dependent on the state for care, since his wife died seven years ago. Jean says: “Frozen pensions are unbelievably unfair. Canadians get their pension uprated in they live in the UK yet we don’t offer the same for those moving in the other direction. The government is keeping families apart and I worry about my father left all alone in Britain while we’re thousands of miles away.”
    3,213 of 4,000 Signatures
    Created by Tim Snowball
  • Mandatory work activity for MPs
    Our MPs get extensive holidays compared to regular members of the public in low paid jobs. I propose they be required to work in a low cost high street food chain on the shop floor for five days, in full public view. Cabinet members who "refuse" to take part or need to be excluded for security reasons must wear a wonky boot, a glove on their dominant hand, and fuzzy goggles from dawn to dusk, secured by locks, and be on web camera at all times except toilet breaks. Use of public transport in full "kit" should be mandatory at least once per day, from random locations across the country. This will ensure they more fully understand the lives of the people they were elected to represent, or the nature of health and disability.
    100 of 200 Signatures
    Created by Colin Wilson
  • Raise the age for apprenticeship schemes
    It will help the economy as people are more settled when they are a little older and more willing to take full advantage of the chance they have been given.
    3 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Craig Egan
  • Making zero hours contracts illegal in Britain.
    Because employer's are a business abusing worker's. And people on zero hour contracts cannot get mortgages and are penalised in other sectors of the economy. Making this bad for the British economy and the Country.
    50 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Chris Garrod
  • Save The Kings Arms, Kingsbridge
    The Kings Arms has been on its current site in the centre of Kingsbridge since 1775 and has offered hospitality to locals and visitors since that time. It is currently closed and is in a dilapidated state - spoiling our main street which otherwise enjoys virtually fully occupancy with independent traders and giving a terrible impression to visitors new to the town. We want to open a dialogue with the owners to see about reinvigorating the building and to let it, once again, be the heart of our community.
    119 of 200 Signatures
    Created by Philip Cole
  • Civil Service Cuts Stoke
    Chancellor George Osborne is committed to cutting a further 100,000 Civil Service jobs by 2020 and shrinking the entire Government Estate by 75% before 2023. Government services that the public rely on are being decimated as a result of job cuts. Examples from the Passport Office, HMCTS, Land Registry, HMRC, DWP and elsewhere show that cuts in the Civil Service are having a negative impact on service users. Communities are being cut-off from local services. The Civil Service is near to breaking point, the digital technology replacing local services untested and unstable making the planned cuts unsustainable. In Stoke-on-Trent the HMRC have announced that Blackburn House tax office will close by or before 2020 with the loss of between 250-300 jobs to the local economy. Locally DWP has lost around a third of its workforce in the area since 2010 to the detriment of service delivery and the welfare of its remaining workforce. The impact of the loss of this significant number of jobs to the local economy and labour market cannot be underestimated. There is no clear evidence that growth in private sector jobs within the area will replace these jobs. We call on the Government to halt the cuts to Civil Service jobs in Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire and invest in Central Government services within the region.
    176 of 200 Signatures
    Created by Peter Rofe
  • Pay people aged 21-25 "The Living Wage"
    For Fairness and equality which clearly doesn't exist anymore for the under 25's. The fact that people over the age of 21 have all the responsibilities of an adult but not the wages is an absolute disgrace and grossly unfair and an total insult to the hard working people between the ages of 21 and 25 who really should be entitled to this rise. The message from George Osborne seems perfectly clear - people between the ages of 21-25 are adults, should be expected to work as hard as an adult and shoulder all the other responsibilities of an adult but just not earn the same amount of money as one.
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    Created by Christian Duncan
  • Full Basic State Pension for NI relief Pension savers
    By using the NI relief element to reduce the new State Pension from those that had the foresight to save is morally wrong & could be legally wrong when workers were given this there was not an option saying this will reduce your basic pension, employees who have been paying in to schemes via wages & had this relief have had a pension forecast every year & added the Basic State Pension in to their calculations, now we are told that we will lose some as its part of the Pension we have saved for ( encouraged by the Government) ie actual case history: a woman of 60 who is on an average wage has been on the D code NI relief for 18 years has been informed she will lose £36.50 per week that's £1898 even though she has a 43 year NI payment history. She has been informed that her private Pension will be £10,000 pa plus BSP for the last few years but now will be nearly £2000 down on this figure because of the change as no option to stop the relief or notice of this change has been given before now this is totally unfair. Workers in this position on between £15000 - £30000 will be the most effected by this. I believe the reasoning behind this is that private pension savers have their pension to top up their income, but for those who do not have big Pensions like MP's of 40k - 100k this amount matters a lot to their long term retirement plans. As receivers of a private pension they will not be able to claim any top up benefits & could well be worse off than someone who has never saved for a pension or worked at all. This is not fair or right
    36 of 100 Signatures
    Created by June Jeremy
  • Bring the Brighton Wheel to Ramsgate
    Margate has The Turner Centre and Dreamland to attract visitors. We have our beautiful Royal Harbour, Tunnels and wonderful cafe culture but we need more reasons for families to visit. Thanet as a whole would benefit from the added tourism as we would be able to offer a better package, more reasons to visit. The wheel would not incur huge capital investment, ongoing leasing fees would be paid for out of revenue, therefore no risk to the council.
    347 of 400 Signatures
    Created by Maria Thompson
  • MPs should be paid in line with all public workers
    Because the government is telling us we are all in it together.Prove it by Using the same method as public workforce pay is set by.
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    Created by bob adcock
  • 'Help!'.. me save what I've already started.
    I will sadly loose the chance to make a difference as well as my livelihood. Within 6 months I will create my business with the need to employ people from the local community. With in 1 year I will be able to help my community sustainability in teams of job creation and long term employment prospects. These are just a few things I do: I am a local children's charity supporter and make regular financial contributions. I am a member of the Dudley Health Group. I am a weekly contributor to the local Dudley food bank. I also work alongside the youth of all nations to assist in there future growth and development. I am a chief church usher and I am an active church member of 13 years for the Dudley New Testament Church. I work closely with the Afro-carribean centre. Sending me back to Jamaica means l loose my formed friendships and community family, l will have nothing and I will be homeless. The deadline for the immigration tribunal to receive this is the 30th March 2016. Help me to continue to make a positive change and contribution to the UK future growth and to the future adults of tomorrow. Please sign this petition. And thanks for all the support. Dwayne Millwood.
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    Created by Dwayne MIllwood2 Picture