The government will not reverse its decision to scrap winter fuel payments, the leader of the House of Commons has said. About 10 million pensioners not receiving pension credit will lose the payment of up to £300 from mid-September, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves blaming a £22bn “black hole” in public finances for the decision to restrict the allowance.
MPs and charities have criticised the move in recent days, with the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats pushing for a Commons vote.
But Lucy Powell told BBC Breakfast she could not see a scenario in which Ms Reeves abandons her plan, and warned there could have been a “run on the pound” had the government not taken action on public finances.Ms Powell acknowledged that losing the payment would make things even tighter for pensioners, but defended the government for taking “really difficult decisions” such as targeting winter fuel payments. The reason we are doing that is because the deficit was much higher than anyone thought, spending was higher than anyone thought,” she said.
“If we hadn’t taken that action we’d have seen a run on the pound, the economy crashing and the people who pay the heaviest price for that are the poorest, including pensioners and those on fixed incomes. That stability is really important for living standards.
She said Labour’s commitment to the state pension triple lock and focus on economic stability would protect pensioners in the long term. Asked if she could see any scenario where the winter fuel payments decision could be reversed, Ms Powell said: “I don’t.
The government’s resistance to rethinking the policy comes after a slew of criticism in recent days.
On Thursday, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey joined the Conservatives in calling for a Commons vote on scrapping winter fuel payments, describing it as the government’s first big mistake. Labour MPs loyal to Sir Keir Starmer have told the BBC of their growing unease over the policy, with one senior backbencher branding the move a “mean means test.
Source: BBC
