CITY of York MP Hugh Bayley has been given a grilling by some of his constituents about pensions and other Government departments.

The pensioners fired a whole host of questions - ranging from those relating to taxation through to Britain's involvement in Iraq - at Mr Bayley, during the public meeting at Tramways Social Club, in Mill Street, York.

Dozens of members of the Transport And General Workers Union Northern - Retired Members Association - turned out to hear the MP address a spectrum of issues.

Members of this section of the union are calling for pensions to be increased to £214 a week before 2012, and for an end to the system of means-testing them.

Les Marsh, of the National Pension Convention, said at the meeting that people's pensions should reflect the fact that Britain was one of the richest countries in the world.

One pensioner questioned why the Government had introduced a payment system to help older people pay their council tax, but had then removed it.

Another disagreed with the amount of money Britain was spending in Iraq, in view of the pensions older people were receiving.

Mr Bayley said at the meeting: "We have almost doubled the minimum amount a pensioner needs to survive a week - £119 - from what it was when we came to power - that's a big step forward.

"Our ambition is to increase this even further.

"There were 2.1 million pensioners in poverty in 1997 - they are now living above the poverty line. We've introduced free TV licences for the over-75s, and free travel on local bus services.

"Every year we do a bit more for pensioners, and as long as we're in power, every year we will continue to do a bit more," he said.

Mr Bayley said it had been "bad" of the Government to introduce and then stop the council tax rebate for pensioners - but that Gordon Brown had to balance his books somehow.

He said every extra pound paid out to pensioners had to come from additional taxation - and that the Government was trying to balance this in a way that was fair to everyone.

Mr Bayley said the Government was looking at withdrawing British soldiers from Iraq, but that it had to be sure law and order could be maintained in the country before it could do so.

He said he would take a "lot of guidance" from the meeting about where extra money for pensioners should come from.