GMB threatens to sue councillors for unpaid pension

Pensioner's money not paid since January

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Pensioner Mrs. Maguire of Greenford Middlesex has not been paid the pension owed to her from her deceased husband's Ealing Council Local Government Pension since his death on 21 January 2004, say GMB union.


Unless immediate action is taken to rectify the situation the GMB are threatening to issue legal action against Ealing's Mayor and Councilors whose responsibility to ensure the payment.


Correspondence with Ealing Councillors and Ealing Council's Pension Manager have failed to get a result. Contact with Liberata has failed to get the £213.25 monthly pension payments out of Ealing Council or the pension fund administrators Liberata.


Liberata have contracts with several other councils including South Oxfordshire, Swindon, Rother, North Somerset and Redcar and Cleveland. It also has contracts with government departments and big business such as The Department of Work and Pensions, The Department of Culture, Media and Sport, CIS Cooperative Insurance, Zurich Insurance. ICI, Magnet, Deloitte & Touche and JP Morgan Chase.


Paul Kenny, GMB Senior Official and member of the TUC General Council said, �Ealing Council's own website reports that, �Surveys tell us that residents find the council difficult to get through to on the phone and frustrating to deal with, even when a request is simple.� Well they are not kidding. It has been impossible to get the money owed to Mrs Maquire out of them. They point the figure at big business Liberata who according to John Cudmore are having �teething troubles administering the Ealing Pension Scheme'. The money owed to Mrs Maguire might be tiny compared to the millions Liberata boast it handles, but to her it is vital income that she is being denied by a Goliath of big business because of their administrative inefficiency...I want action today not worthless promises.�

An interesting question arises from the possibility of suing councillors. Whatever criticisms people have, many councillors do give a lot of time and energy to work on behalf of the community for small reward. Should they be sued for every failing of the council, and will people continue to volunteer for this role if they can be sued personally? Is this the best way to hold the Council accountable? Is the complaints procedure too slow or ineffective? Have your say on our forum (anyone can read postings, and please register to contribute).

September 21, 2004