I welcome the debate and the opportunity to raise an issue of great concern to many British-born people who now live in Commonwealth countries. I have an interest in that I chair the United Kingdom branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and the subject has come to the attention of our executive committee. At a recent meeting of the British-Canadian parliamentary group, the Canadian high commissioner raised the issue with hon. Members and expressed his concerns. I recently had a long discussion with the Australian high commissioner on this subject.

In May last year, I asked a parliamentary question and I have with me today the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Minister of State, Department of Social Security.The issue is clear cut. When United Kingdom citizens retire to certain Commonwealth countries they find that their state retirement pension is frozen at the rate it was when they left the UK. That happens in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. A system is in place in many other Commonwealth countries to enable British expatriates who receive their state retirement pension to benefit from any increases that may be made by the United Kingdom Government.

This is not a new issue. It has prevailed for many years. Early-day motions have been signed by many right hon. and hon. Members from all parties. A great number of questions have been asked on the matter. The problem is therefore very well known. It greatly angers retired people from the UK who now live in Commonwealth countries and who receive no uprating in the state retirement pension. No matter how long they may have worked in the UK or how many contributions they have made towards the cost of their state pension, no increases are paid.

There are organisations that represent United Kingdom pensioners in many Commonwealth countries. The Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners feels angry and badly let down by successive UK Governments and says:

"By ending this shameful pension discrimination the British Government would display the integrity its citizens expect, enable pensioners to afford the personal care and standard of living required in their retirement years, help return some degree of pride to the lives of pensioners and bring Britain in line with all other developed countries." That clearly spells out the views of a major pensioners group in Canada. I am certain that it also reflects the views of pensioner groups in any Commonwealth country where United Kingdom state pension increases do not apply.

All hon. Members will know about an organisation that works with retired people in the United Kingdom--the highly regarded Age Concern, which is currently campaigning to secure dignity and security for elderly people in the United Kingdom. People from the United Kingdom now living in Commonwealth countries where the state pension is never increased want precisely the same commitment. They want dignity and security in their retirement and they are absolutely right to expect it.

This month sees pension increases of £5 per week for a single person, £8 for a married couple and a £200 winter fuel allowance. The decision to implement those increases was taken by the Government. I am sure that my hon. Friend the Minister will have played a major role in securing those measures, which are a step in the right direction and have been warmly welcomed on all sides of the House. Hon. Members contemplating doing away with them quickly changed their minds when they realised how popular they were with retired people in the United Kingdom.

It is easy to understand the deep concern of retired people in receipt of a state pension from the United Kingdom that will not be increased because they live in a particular Commonwealth country. How unfair and unjust that policy must seem. Under the present system, those people will never receive a pension rise simply because they have retired to a specific Commonwealth country. Had they retired to a different Commonwealth country, they would have received any and all pension increases introduced since they left the United Kingdom. For example, elderly people who have retired to Canada fail to receive pension increases, but those who have retired to the country next door--the United States--receive those increases.

About 138,000 pensioners from the United Kingdom currently live in Canada. In 1972 the United Kingdom proposed a new agreement with the Canadian Government under which pension increases could take place. The Canadian and UK Governments held discussions, so will the Minister tell us what went wrong with them? In a written answer to my question on 16 May last year--at column 120W in Hansard--I was told by my right hon. Friend the Minister of State that 470,000 UK retired people living overseas did not receive any pension increase because their pensions were frozen when they left the UK.

The other Commonwealth country that is badly affected is Australia, where 215,000 UK pensioners now live. The Minister will be fully aware of the changes that were made last month by the Australian Government. Can he tell us what the effect of those changes will be on retired British citizens who are living in Australia or who may go to live there in future? I understand that there have been discussions with the Australian Government and the Department of Social Security. Will the Minister tell us about those discussions? Will the position of UK citizens living in Australia now or in the future be protected? There are 215,000 retired UK people living in Australia, so we can understand their interest and concern about the issue.

So far, I have spoken about Canada and Australia, but other Commonwealth countries have no uprating of pensions for retired people from the UK. Those countries are South Africa and New Zealand. We are not talking about large numbers of retired people from the UK compared with the figures for Canada and Australia, but numbers should not be the key factor. Retired people from the UK who contributed to their state retirement pensions have gone to live in Commonwealth countries and then found that their state pension had been frozen, so that they do not receive any increases made in the UK. I can well understand such people complaining about how unfair the system is, and my hon. Friend the Minister must recognise that it is hard to defend.

Let us examine the countries in which UK citizens will receive UK increases in their state retirement pension. I have already mentioned the pleasure expressed by pensioners here at the increases of £5 and £8 that will apply from later this month. How popular those increases will be in places such as Bermuda, Cyprus, Jersey, Malta, Jamaica and Barbados; all are Commonwealth countries where state pensions are uprated when increases happen in the UK.

UK citizens who have gone to live in countries such as the United States, the Philippines, Turkey, Israel, or Switzerland--not one of them a Commonwealth country--will, in time, have any UK pension increase paid to them. How does the Minister think that UK citizens feel if they live in a country where there will be no uprating? I know that I would feel very bitter. The problem has continued under successive Governments who did not take the right decision. Hon. Members from all parties support the proposed changes because, like me, they believe that the existing system is unfair. If Members of Parliament had a free vote on the issue there would be massive support for changes to the present system, and no one, not even my hon. Friend the Minister, could say, "Oh, it could not be done." I accept that cost is a major issue, but it should not be used repeatedly as the reason for doing nothing and simply saying, "Oh, we know of the concerns in countries such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, but we can't change the system because of the cost involved." Governments can implement change and discuss with other Governments how new policies can be introduced. What discussions are the Government having with the Governments of the countries to which I referred?

As I said, I know from my role as chair of the United Kingdom branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association that the high commissioners of Canada and Australia and many other people will follow the debate closely, especially the Minister's reply. Cost should not be the only concern; there is also the issue of fairness, and the present system is most unfair.