MP says cuts to pensioners' winter fuel payments was 'right decision'

A Tameside MP says controversial cuts to winter fuel payments was the 'right decision to get our country's finances on a firmer footing".

The claim by Denton MP Andrew Gwynne comes after many politicians in Greater Manchester warned pensioners could be left 'struggling to survive' this winter.

Mr Gwynne, who is Minister for Public Health and Prevention, urged pensioners to find out if they are eligible to claim pension credits to continue to receive the winter fuel payments.

He said: "As the Chancellor explained, this was not a decision that she wanted to or expected to make, but it was the right decision to get our country’s finances on a firmer footing.

"We also know that those with the broadest shoulders should bear the heavier burden.

"That includes cracking down on non-doms, tackling tax avoidance, ending the tax break on private schools, strengthening the powers of the water regulator, and backing tough fines on water companies.

"When Liz Truss lost control of the economy it was ordinary people, including pensioners, who paid the price. Under the last Tory government, over 800,000 eligible pensioners didn’t get the benefits they were entitled to.

"This government has committed to the triple lock meaning pensions will increase by £900 this year alone, bring in GB energy to cut bills and upgrade homes across the nation with insulation and low-carbon heating."

All three of Tameside's MPs - Mr Gwynne, Deputy Prime Minister and Ashton MP Angela Rayner and Staslybridge and Hyde representative Jonathan Reynolds - voted in favour of the cuts.

High Peak MP Jon Pearce also supported axing the payments.

Meanwhile, fears are growing in town halls across the region that elderly residents could find themselves unable to keep their homes warm enough when temperatures drop.

Thousands of pensioners in Greater Manchester are set to lose out on the £200 to £300 yearly sum, after a majority of MPs backed proposals to limit the payment to those who get Pension Credit, or pensioners claiming other means-tested benefits.

In Stockport, council leader Mark Hunter said up to 50,000 people in the borough will be at the sharp end of the cuts – around 90 percent of those currently eligible.

He said the move will “leave many residents currently on the margins of fuel poverty struggling to heat their homes and stay alive this winter.”

Meanwhile in Salford, council chiefs say 25,000 households currently receive winter fuel payments, but only 6,000 claim pension credits, meaning thousands are due to lose out on the money.

Salford City Mayor Paul Dennett said the payment is “an absolute lifeline” for many, and that the knock on effect of losing it will “pile pressure on local health and social care services.”

Salford MP Rebecca Long-Bailey abstained during yesterday’s vote in the House of Commons and said there are “grave concerns” about the impact it will have on the city.

Tom Morrison, MP for Cheadle in the borough of Stockport, added: “Over the last few weeks, I have been inundated with correspondence from concerned local pensioners about the proposed cuts to Winter Fuel Allowance from the government. I wholly reject the Government’s plans as they stand and voted against them."

In Oldham, council leader Arooj Shah said just 5,500 of Oldham’s 37,000 pensioners receive pension credit and will continue to receive the Winter Fuel Allowance payments.

She added: “We are determined to ensure that no pensioner in Oldham goes cold this winter. We know the changes to the winter fuel payments will worry older people in the town which is why we’ve been working with AgeUK Oldham to minimise the impact.

“Over the past six months we have identified hundreds of older people in Oldham who are entitled to pension credit, but aren’t claiming it. Along with AgeUK Oldham we have already contacted – by phone, letter and in person – those households to encourage them to apply and we will continue to do so as winter approaches. We are also supporting the government’s campaign to get people to sign up.

“We also welcome the government’s announcement that the Household Support Fund is to be extended and we will be using those funds to make sure that older people affected by the change to allowance have access to support if they need it.”

The government has defended the plans and said that “the dire state” of public finances motivated the move.

A spokesperson said: “We are committed to giving pensioners the dignity and security they deserve in retirement, which is why we are protecting the Triple Lock with the State Pension set to increase by £1,700 over the course of Parliament.

“But given the dire state of the public finances we have inherited, it’s right that we target support to those who need it most. Over a million pensioners will continue to receive the winter fuel payment, many will benefit from the £150 Warm Home Discount scheme, and we urge others to check their eligibility for Pension Credit."

Age UK estimates that a total of 2.5 million older people on low incomes are set to lose their Winter Fuel Payment.

Caroline Abrahams CBE, charity director at Age UK said: “As the weather chills – as it is forecast to do as early as this week – older people on low incomes will be trying to decide whether they can afford to turn their heating on or not.

“Our biggest fear at Age UK is that many in the two and half million group will choose not to even try to stay adequately warm, for fear of a fuel bill they won’t be able to pay.”