Prime Minister Kier Starmer has today heralded a review of the Government’s decision to end Winter Fuel Payments for all pensioners, suggesting that they will be widening the eligibility criteria to ensure more pensioners in need of support will get it in future.
According to the BBC, Kier Starmer told Parliament, “We want to ensure that, as we go forward, more pensioners are eligible for Winter Fuel Payments.”
CSPA General Secretary, Sally Tsoukaris, said:
“The Prime Minister’s announcement on the Winter Fuel Payment today, 21st May, is very welcome. CSPA has campaigned tirelessly to have this support reinstated for all pensioners.
“The Government should not have linked the entitlement to Pension Credit in the first place, as it had historically low take-up rates, so using it as a gateway to Winter Fuel Payments meant that many people on lower incomes missed out. Since the Chancellor’s announcement last July, we have urged the UK Government to – at the very least – widen the eligibility criteria so that more older people struggling to make ends meet would be supported.
“While this change in stance is good news, we have little detail about how the eligibility criteria are to be altered, leaving many older people anxious about whether they can budget on getting a payment next Winter. At a time when inflation is running at 3.5% and higher household bills for essentials like gas, electricity, water and Council Taxes have hit people’s pockets from this April, older people on low incomes simply need to know if they will be able to stay warm next Winter.
