700,000 PENSIONERS LIVING IN POVERTY

6.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Sat 16th Aug 2008

That is the shocking information that Local Lib Dems have obtained from Liberal Democrat Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, Jenny Willott.

Pensioners do not claim all the of the money that they are entitled to because they are put off claiming benefits by complex forms and lengthy phone applications, while many assume they aren't entitled to any extra help.

Jenny Willott said: "The benefits system is so complex it is failing the pensioners it is supposed to be helping. "Benefits must be simplified to ensure that pensioners get the cash they so desperately need.

"The Government must stop dragging its feet and restore the link between the state pension and earnings immediately. This will ensure all pensioners are better off."

Commenting on this Lib Dem PPC Tania Exley-Moore said "It will have the added benefit that pensioners will not be forced to undergo the ordeal of filling in these complex forms in order to obtain what is rightfully theirs.

With inflation nearing the 5% mark for the first time since 1997 Liberal Democrats will be watching closely to see that Government increases pensions at the very least by inflation this year. That was the promise and if it not kept pensioners will fall even further behind than they have since the Conservative Government broke the link between earnings and pensions.