This winter will be “a deeply challenging one” for millions of pensioners following the restriction of winter fuel payments, a charity has said.
Caroline Abrahams, Age UK’s charity director, said the defeat of a Tory motion opposing plans to means-test the benefit was “inevitable” – but added the charity was still “deeply disappointed”.
MPs voted to reject the Conservative motion on Tuesday by a majority of 120, with around a dozen Labour MPs thought to have deliberately abstained and one, Jon Trickett, voting against.
The result means that the plan to restrict winter fuel payments only to those receiving pension credit will go ahead this winter, a policy Age UK has strongly opposed.
Ms Abrahams said: “The reality is that driving through this policy as the Government is doing will make millions of poor pensioners poorer still and we are baffled as to why some ministers are asserting that this is the right thing to do.
“We and many others are certain that it is not, and that’s why we will continue to stand with the pensioners who can’t afford to lose their payment and campaign for them to be given more Government support.
“Meanwhile, winter is coming and we fear it will be a deeply challenging one for millions of older people who have previously relied on their winter fuel payment to help pay their energy bills and who have no obvious alternative source of funds on which to draw.”
Ministers say restricting winter fuel payments is necessary to help fill a £22 billion “black hole” in this year’s budget, which they claim was caused by the previous government making unfunded spending commitments.
The policy means around 10 million pensioners will no longer receive winter fuel payments, with Age UK arguing around 2.5 million of them are on low incomes and “badly need” the benefit.
Ms Abrahams added that it was “crystal clear” that there was not enough time to improve take-up of pension credit before colder weather arrived.
The End Fuel Poverty Coalition – made up of more than 70 charities, campaign groups and other organisations – also criticised the decision.
The coalition’s co-ordinator, Simon Francis, said MPs had voted to “condemn some of the most vulnerable pensioners to live in cold damp home this winter”.
He said: “Parliamentarians and ministers should examine their conscience and the deluge of correspondence they have had on this issue from worried pensioners and back ways to mitigate the pain of the cut.”
Meanwhile, broadcaster and celebrity mathematician Carol Vorderman attacked Sir Keir Starmer over the decision, saying he should apologise to those who had “loaned their vote” to Labour.
She told Sky News’ Politics Hub: “I’m shocked by it, because they could raise that money in so many other ways”.
