Dear Jean Lambert,

        Due to our recent move from Scotland to Belgium, it has been some time since I have written to you to give you a status overview of actions of retired NL citizens living in other EU countries, against the extra financial burden the NL Government has bestowed upon them for "healthcare" without providing any services and resulting in double payment.

The fight is going on relentlessly, monies are withheld randomly from pensions, or any payment that could possibly be interpreted like that.

 

I am also a victim, being withheld  approximately  400 euro's a month for the Dutch healthcare system although I (was) living in Scotland and using the NHS (and pay for it through general taxation).

Furthermore I am pre -pensioned through a system called FPU, of which the Health Minister has recently stated in response to questions from members of the House that FPU does not fall under 1408/71.

However, the CVZ, implementing body being legislator, judge and jury on this matter, makes everybody pay even though they know they are committing a number of illegal actions.

People in EU countries who are really sick are truly suffering because they may only use the national healthcare system of the country they reside in (having been kicked out of their private insurance by the NL Government, while at the same time the rest of the NL people living in the NL were forced to take private pensions) and in spite of the fact that they pay also a full fare for the NL system which they may not use.

In a first court case the NL judge ignored all of the allegations and only provided for a lower charge for care if other countries do not have this system(most of the countries). The Minister has concocted a system for this which is not in line with European figures, and of course again hurts the pensioners.

A recent case before the Dutch Council of State gave (after a 4 months delay, against statutory rules) a similar result. All factual demands brought forward were ignored, and the only result was a verdict of inadmissibility. One of the people (a retired lawyer) is now fighting this result as a denial of judgement. The letter in Annex refers and gives a clear depiction of the unsavoury way the NL (and allegedly, a  Mr Cornelissen, a Dutchman working at the Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities DG) is handling this matter.

 

The Dutch pensioner's group is fighting on, having spend in excess of 350K Euro on NL judges who subsequently shy away from the real facts. A new court case is being prepared in Amsterdam, in the hope to finally find a judge who dares to tackle the problem. If not successful, the group will refer to the European Court of Justice. A long and costly way to go, why is justice so hard to get?

 

After taking many actions and writing many letters to the various EU agencies no results are forthcoming it seems. We get the (hopefully wrong) impression that the EU is being manipulated by NL Government and its cronies (Cornelissen) and that actions from citizens are drowning in the EU bureaucracy. But the EU cannot sit on its hands, it is involved, migrated people fall under EU legislation, so why is there no response or action from the EU if a member country is blatantly ignoring/manipulating EU rules and regulations.

 

The bottom line appears to be that the NL Government victimises a group of retired people whose pensions can easily be manhandled, to make up for the flow of money the NL thinks to be losing because of the free movement within the EU.

I hope my letter and the Annex, will give you more insight in this ongoing tragedy.

Together with over a hundred thousand NL pensioners I really do hope that the EU parliament will stop this rot which undermines any belief in NL Government and, if nothing happens, also in the EU institutions.

 

Finally, since we are now residing in Belgium, I wonder if it is possible for me to pay you a visit in Brussels in order for me to gain a better insight in how the EU deals with a case like this. Such insight could help us as a group to find a solution and rectify this terrible situation.

 

Yours Sincerely,

 

C. van Rein,

Lid Avem