It must be the silly season.   For why else would the European Court of Justice come out with the barmy decision to allow expats living in warm countries to claim up to £100million in winter fuel payments.  

Until now, eldery people living in places like Spain, where average January temperatures can reach 17C (63F in old money) could only qualify for winter fuel allowance if they had reached the age of 60 before leaving Britain.   But the European Court now say that claimants need only `have a genuine and sufficient link with the UK,` including having `lived or worked in the UK for most of their working life.`   It means that anyone born on or before July 1951 can make a claim.

Now, given that there are some 444,000 British pensioners living abroad and with the payment worth as much as £200 or £300, the total bill will rocket to about £100million a year, just at a time when the economic state of the UK is the worst it has been for decades.   

Now I don`t mind pensioners upping sticks and living out their retirement in France or Spain but there are two nonsenses here.  The first is that if you choose to live in a country where the winters are mild, the climate warm and the living is easy, then why on earth would you need a chunk of money designed to help keep you from suffering the effects of cold weather?   So the idea of introducing a temperature test seems a good idea......always provided, of course, that the European Court will allow it.

Which brings me to the second nonsense.   And we`ve been here before, of course.   It is why we should simply accept the harebrained diktat of this remote, unelected, unaccountable Euro outfit anyway.   There are simply times when we should just say `No.`   And if they attempt to fine us for ignoring their daft pronouncement, just refuse to pay the fine.   Simples.