Chief Secretary To Treasury Meets Labour MPs Over Winter Fuel Payment Concern
Chief financial secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones met with Labour MPs on Tuesday. (Alamy)
3 min read
Darren Jones, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, met with Labour MPs to hear their concerns about the Government's decision to make scale back the Winter Fuel Payment.
On Monday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced that the Winter Fuel Payment, currently available to all pensioners, would be moving to a means-tested arrangement. As a result, only those claiming means tested benefits like pension credit will be eligible.
Households receiving pension credit will receive the £200 payment, with £300 available to households within someone over the age of 80 and receiving pension credit.
Speaking in the House of Commons yesterday, Reeves said the decision was not one she "wanted" to make, but one that was needed to help plug a £22bn "black hole" which she accused the previous Tory government on inflicting on public finances.
PoliticsHome understands that Jones, who works under Reeves in the Treasury, met with dozens of Labour MPs on Tuesday morning, where he heard concerns about the impact the changes could have on pensioners living in fuel poverty.
It is currently estimated around 900,000 pensioners on low incomes who are eligible for pension credit currently do not claim it, and would therefore be facing losing their Winter Fuel Payment.
In a bid to reassure anxious Labour MPs, who reported emails from constituents about the cut, PoliticsHome understands the Government will launch a campaign to increase the take up of pension credit to ensure those on low incomes still receive Winter Fuel Payments.
It was also suggested that the deadline for claiming pension credit could be pushed further back in the year to ensure those affected by the decision have more time to apply for the support.
One newly-elected Labour MP who attended the briefing told PoliticsHome they felt reassured by Jones, but wanted ministers to look into making pension credit automatic for eligible pensioners. Another MP who was present said the Chief Secretary to the Treasury was "charming and competent".
Senior researcher at the New Economics Foundation, Alex Chapman, told PoliticsHome the announcements were an example of the Keir Starmer Government attempting to "find ways to cut back on spending and avoid raising taxes".
"It's definitely the case fuel poverty is generally more prevalent amongst working age households, overall," said Chapman.
"But that's not to say that there isn't a very significant group who are living on the edge who are in the pensioner age group."
Caroline Abrahams, director at Age UK, has criticised the decision to means-test the Winter Fuel Payments, warning it could affect "as many as two million pensioners who badly need the money to stay warm this winter".
“A big reason for this disastrous outcome is that more than one in three pensioners entitled to Pension Credit, the qualifying benefit for Winter Fuel Payment under this proposal, don’t receive it, a proportion that’s been roughly constant for many years" said Abrahams.
"More than 800,000 older people living on very low incomes – under £218.25 a week for single pensioners and under £332.95 for couples – who are already missing out of the Pension Credit they are entitled to get to boost their incomes, will now lose the Winter Fuel Payment that helps them to pay their fuel bills."
Additional reporting by Sienna Rodgers.
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