BRITISH DEATHS (both military and civilian) caused by the two World Wars were:
1914-1918 994,138
1939-1945 449,700
This is the equivalent of one death every 3 minutes during WWI and one death every 8 minutes during WWII. Since these wars public opinion has come to realise that this type of attrition is totally unacceptable; in fact during all the conflicts the UK has been involved in since WWII – Korea, Falklands, Northern Ireland, Afghanistan, Iraq – loss of life has been at a rate of less than one per day. UK road deaths, at 5 a day, attract considerable political activity and comment, as do asylum seeker drownings in the Mediterranean – 9 a day this year.
In comparison, here are the England, Wales & Scotland figures for excess winter deaths (December to March) for over 65’s:
2010-11 24,900
2011-12 23,540
2012-13 30,500
2013-14 17,700
Two hundred excess pensioner deaths a day over these four winters – one every 7 minutes. Where were the headlines?
On average, UK pensioners are dying every winter for cold related reasons faster than people were being killed during the last World War, and over 200 times as fast as people have died in every subsequent conflict!
Pensioners don’t die like this in other EU countries such as Sweden and Germany, both of which have far colder winters than we do. The fact that the UK state pension is one of the lowest in Europe might be related. Certainly the stark choice many British pensioners face between heating or food is no myth.
Despite all this, some politicians question the need for the winter fuel payment. Easy for MP’s to do this, perhaps, when they have just voted themselves a pay rise that is higher than the entireState Pension.
The Government’s Office for National Statistics publishes these excess winter death figures every year. The figures for winter 2014-15 will be released on the 25th November. The National Pensioners Convention is the only orgnisation that represets pensioners at both a local and national level. We plan for regions across the country to release 50 black balloons at 12 noon on the 25th November to publicise these appalling figures.
NPC Devon intends to release 50 balloons from Cathedral Green in Exeter but we need feet on the ground. Our demonstration will not be effective without a significant number of supporters. We need to show that people are concerned about this awful loss of pensioners’ lives every winter, so we are asking the members of the public to be there with us:
Cathedral Green, 25th November 12 noon
You don’t have to be a member of NPC or a pensioner – just someone who cares about this tragic loss of life.
David Smith
Chair, NPC Devon
