August Get Together of the Samui Ex-Servicemen

Tuesday the 26th August, 4:30 pm at The Full Moon Bungalows in Bang Rak will see the next get together of the Samui Ex-Servicemen. Following on from the excellent turnout at the last meet up lets all make an effort to support the Full Moon Bungalows in Bang Rak. If you need directions please contact me on samuiexservicemen@gmail.com

Walt Alert:

Members are advised that a 6’ Australian claiming to be 47 but looking much younger has surfaced on the Island claiming to have been seconded to the SAS (12 tours of iraq/stan!). He was immediately rumbled by several of our members & subsequently failed their Walt-Detector test(s). We’ll need to devise new lyrics for walting matilda in case he shows up at our next meeting.

UK Armed Forces Veterans Lapel Badge

For generations our Armed Forces have served their country across the world in many roles from war fighting, peacekeeping and reconstruction to home defence. In so doing, they have defended our country, our way of life and our cherished values. A large number of our veterans are young and active and now use the skills, the discipline and the leadership qualities they learned in the Armed Forces to benefit their civilian employers and the wider community. The Ministry of Defence Strategy for Veterans highlights that because of all this it is important to focus on supporting veterans of all ages, by celebrating, and raising public awareness of, their achievements and their contribution to society. To promote recognition of veterans by the wider British public the unique and unifying symbol of the HM Armed Forces Veterans Badge was introduced.

The UK Armed Forces Veterans’ Lapel Badge was launched in May 2004 by the Minister of Veterans, to raise the profile of veterans by assisting the wider public to recognise them. The first veterans badge was issued to Lord Healy, a veteran of the Battle for Monte Cassino, on 10 May 2004, which initiated the roll out of the badge to the Second World War veteran generation. Since then eligibility to apply for the badge has been extended in sequential phases to all veterans. This has now closed the gap between those who apply for their badge and those who receive it automatically on leaving the Services.

The badge is an enamelled, engraved, and pinned, lapel badge featuring the words “HM Armed Forces – Veteran”, which encompass the Tri-Service, Anchor, Crossed Swords and Eagle motif. Its symbolism is intended to unite all veterans in recognising the commonality of their service, to encourage a sense of unity and community between surviving veterans and to ignite public recognition of current veterans and their continuing contribution to society.

Eligibility

Criteria
All those who have served in HM Armed Forces.

Exceptions
Veterans who served in Armed Forces of other Countries and those who served alongside HM Armed Forces are not eligible (e. g. Canadian Navy or Royal Australian Air Force).

Posthumous requests
The badge is a survivors badge and therefore is not issued posthumously.
The only exceptions are War Widows and Widowers who are in receipt of a War Widows/Widowers Pension paid by the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency. This is in recognition of the fact that their death was due to their military service.
DQ Graham to provide word around the term survivors

How to apply

You can apply by any of the following methods:
Click on one of the links below to access the application form.

Application Forms

• Acrobat Reader Version

Please ensure you complete the form as fully as possible.

You may post or fax your completed form to the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency.

Another option is to download the form, complete it electronically, save the form and return to the
Service Personnel and Veterans Agency by email.

If you wish, you may call the Freephone number to apply. Please ensure you have to hand all the details asked for on the application form.

Postal address:

Service Personnel and Veterans Agency,
Norcross
Thornton-Cleveleys,
Lancashire,
FY5 3WP

Fax:
01253 330561(UK Only)
+44 1253 330561 (Overseas)

Email: lapelbadge.team@spva.gsi.gov.uk

Freephone Helpline
Free: 0800 169 2277 (UK only)
Free: 0800 169 3458 (Minicom UK only)
+44 1253 866043 (Overseas)

Ref: http://www.veterans-uk.info/new_badge/badge.html

Samui Ex-Servicemen

Samui Ex-Servicemen July Get Together

An excellent turn out at the Elephant and Castle in Bang Rak, nearly all our friends were there and a few new Samui Ex-Servicemen came out of the wood work.

A good evening was had by all I hope and thank you to the Elephant and Castle for their hospitality, the Oxtail Stew was just like my Mum's.

The Next time we meet will be on Tuesday the 26th August, 4:30 pm at The Full Moon Bungalows in Bang Rak.

Hope everybody can come along and make it a successful evening.

This petition has been brought to my attention and I am sure is worthy of our support:

The present arrangements for dealing with wounded servicemen and women returning from Afghanistan and Iraq are, frankly, dire.

Some background: '2 Para' alone have, on their current tour, sent back over 50 casualties to the UK, and even that many cannot be accommodated at Selly Oak Hospital. So, when all of the casualties from other battle groups are added to this figure, how is ONE ward in ONE NHS hospital going to cope? It cannot, and as a result the individual troops are either sent to other hospitals or, worse, sent home to recover, relying on NHS visiting services which themselves are over committed.

We need a dedicated military hospital if servicemen and servicewomen, who have been committed to hostilities and injured, are to get the medical care they rightly deserve.

5000 names are needed for this petition to survive, and quite cynically, Downing Street has put a time limit of one month - during the summer holidays - for this to be achieved. So far the number is over 30,000 signatures. Please support it - please copy the link below to confirm your signature on the petition.

To sign up please click Here

Also if you could forward this link to as many people as you know it would be appreciated.

Hope to see you all on the 26th

Samui Ex Servicemen

Samui Ex Servicemen's July Get Together

Tuesday, July the 29th at 4:30 pm will see the next get together of the Samui Ex-Servicemen. We will be meeting at the Elephant & Castle Restaurant and Bar in Bang Rak on Koh Samui. Any Ex-Servicemen or currently serving members of Her Majesty's Services are welcome to come along, have a few drinks, something to eat and chat about days gone by and what is happening now.

Hope to see you there.

Samui Ex-Servicemen

Work Permit Update

Here is some information for all who are working on Koh Samui regarding work permits. Hope it is of assistance.

Understanding the new work permit law

TILLEKE & GIBBINS

Most foreigners working in Thailand are well aware that they need a visa and work permit to stay and work in the country. Yet, they find the law and regulations rather complicated and difficult to comprehend, especially with immigration rules dramatically evolving in the past few years and posing a challenge to the status of many expatriates. Unfortunate expats who either lacked knowledge or failed to keep track of developments in immigration and labour laws and practices have paid a price for their oversight or negligence.

On Feb 23, 2008, the law governing work permits (Working of Aliens Act) generated much attention when it emerged to replace its 30-year-old predecessor. Although the implementation of the major part of this new law has been delayed pending the issuing of several ministerial regulations, it would be prudent for working aliens to familiarise themselves with some key changes.

The greatest point of interest is the punishment imposed on both employer and employee for an employee working without a work permit. The new Act imposes a heavy fine ranging from 2,000 to 100,000 baht upon a violating [alien] employee, significantly increased from 5,000 baht, and/or a five-year term of imprisonment, increased from three years. An employer hiring an alien without a work permit will face high fine of 10,000 to 100,000 baht, although the former three-year imprisonment has been eliminated. Labour officials are now empowered to arrest (without a warrant) any alien suspected of working without a work permit.

Depending on one's point of view, the penalties seem to be harsher for employees and lighter for employers. The new law will allow any alien worker who pleads guilty and voluntarily leaves Thailand within 30 days to be fined without a trial.

Under the new law, a work permit of up to two years may be granted instead of one year under the old law. The most welcome change is that a work permit will no longer be tied to the duration of stay that is stamped on an alien's passport. In other words, work permit holders who do not have a one-year duration of stay will not need to keep extending their work permits by leaving and returning to Thailand on a "visa run" to get a new duration of stay. Nevertheless, work permit holders will still have the duty under immigration laws to maintain a valid duration of stay while in Thailand. This new development awaits implementation in the near future.

The new work permit fee is 20,000 baht. Renewal will cost the same price. In addition, an employer applying to hire alien employees who are not deemed skilled or expert will be charged a 10,000-baht fee per alien. The Department of Employment has not applied these new fee rates as yet.

Employers or employees are no longer obligated to report to the Department of Employment and return a work permit when employment has ended. Under the old law, those who failed to comply would have to pay a fine of 1,000 baht at a police station, which was quite unnecessary and inconvenient.

Nonetheless, labour officials still encourage both parties to report the cessation of employment, otherwise their system would not permit the employee to get a new permit with another employer or the old employer to fill the vacant position.

The Immigration Bureau has reacted to this development. The usual seven-day period of stay after the cessation of work will no longer be automatic but will be granted upon request and payment of 1,900 baht. Most importantly, a further temporary stay while a new work permit application is under consideration will not be given anymore. As a result, aliens switching jobs would be compelled to process their new work permit within seven days or leave Thailand to get a new business visa from a Thai consulate.

Several provisions dedicated to a fund for sending aliens out of the Kingdom have been added. In addition to the existing personal income tax and social security withholdings, the employer will soon be obligated to contribute to the fund by withholding a certain amount from the income paid to work permit holders. The criteria and conditions relating to the contribution are to be set forth later. The fund is intended to relieve the government of the high cost of deporting guilty working aliens and illegal immigrants.

In general, the major changes in this law seem to be positive and more liberal. It is hoped that they will help resolve the enduring problems that have troubled both aliens and the Thai government in the past.

Written by Kobkit Thienpreecha, Attorney, Commercial Department, Tilleke & Gibbins International Ltd. Please send comments or suggestions to Marilyn Tinnakul at marilyn.t@tillekeandgibbins.com

Reference the Bankok Post : http://www.bangkokpost.com/180708_Business/18Jul2008_biz42.php

Samui Ex-Servicemen June Meet Up

Hope all who attended the June Samui Ex-Servicemen meet up at The Red Fox in Lamai had an enjoyable afternoon. Thanks to Alan our host for the excellent stew, a real taste of home. As usual a few topics were discussed and a few beers consumed.

If you are ever in Hong Kong, a recommendation for a cheap pint, was the Mariners Club just over the road from the Star Ferry terminal.

For July's get together it was decided to return to our original venue The Elephant and Castle in Bang Rak on the 29th July at 4:30 pm. Hope to see everybody there.

Here is some information that may be of interest to some of us:

Chancellor Alistair Darling has announced changes to the personal allowance in a bid to defuse the 10p tax row.

The move was intended to compensate the 5.3 million households who lost out when the 10p tax rate was abolished.

It will mean more money for several million people paying the basic tax rate, but administrative work for some businesses.

So how will it affect you?

How did this come about?

A series of tax changes came in at the start of the financial year, on 6 April. They had been announced in Gordon Brown's final Budget as chancellor in 2007 and in the later pre-Budget report.

The changes saw the 10% starter rate of income tax abolished, except on savings income for people who are low paid. The basic tax rate came down to 20% from 22%.

When 5.3 million people realised this meant less money in their pocket, many spoke out leading to a backbench rebellion by Labour MPs.

What changes have now been announced by the chancellor?

Alistair Darling said he wanted to compensate the people who lost out.

He is borrowing £2.7bn to raise personal tax allowance by £600 to £6,035.

This means anyone earning up to about £40,835 will gain £120 this year.

Mr Darling said 4.2 million of those households which lost out previously will receive as much or more than they lost when the 10p starting rate of tax was axed, and the remaining 1.1m households will see their loss at least halved.

The biggest losers, experts say, would be some of the very lowest earners who do not have families and do not work enough hours to claim tax credits.

What is my personal allowance?

The personal allowance means you earn a certain amount of income without paying any tax at all. Income tax starts being paid on earnings above this amount.

Personal allowances are amended each year in the Budget, and usually they go up with inflation.

In the current tax year 2008/2009 the basic personal allowance was set at £5,435 (up from £5,225 the previous year) but has now gone up by £600, a rise backdated until 6 April.

People can expect a £60 lump sum in September pay packets, followed by a £10 monthly increase until the end of the year.

The chancellor's announcement was extremely unusual as it made changes to the tax system after the Budget - a move not seen by a chancellor for around 15 years.

Won't the better off gain too?

Around 17 million middle-income earners, who did not lose out when the 10p rate was axed, will gain from what the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) described as a "simple and expensive option".

Extra money for these people makes up around £2bn of the £2.7bn handout, the IFS says.

Mr Darling said he would lower the starting point at which the 40p tax band is paid by £600 to £40,835, so the most well-off would not gain more.

This will push 150,000 people into the higher 40p tax rate but the Treasury said that these people would still benefit from the extra £120 this year.

It remains to be seen what will happen next year, as all these changes are for this year only.

It also remains to be seen whether this move - which will give millions of people a little more spending power - will cut the chances of a fall in interest rates in the coming months.

What does it mean for people running small businesses?

While many low and middle income earners will gain, there are some issues to deal with for those who pay them.

Chas Roy-Chowdhury, head of taxation at the Association of Chartered Accountants, said businesses systems and processes will have to be updated halfway through the tax year in September.

"SMEs represent over 99% of UK businesses, and they will have to change their PAYE codes and tax systems," he said.

Ref: BBC News: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7399105.stm

Samui Ex-Servicemen June Get Together

24th June, 4:30 pm, The Red Fox, Lamai, Koh Samui will see the 6th Samui Ex Serviceman's get together.

All ex servicemen and serving members of the armed forces are welcome to come along and enjoy the company of like minded people.

So if you are free on Tuesday afternoon we look forward to seeing you in Lamai at The Red Fox.

Samui Ex Servicemen