Tom Morrison MP fights Labour's Winter Fuel Cuts

Liberal Democrat MP for Cheadle, Tom Morrison has backed a motion in Parliament to block government plans to scrap Winter Fuel Payments for most pensioners. 

It comes as new analysis shows an estimated 18,869 pensioners in Cheadle are at risk of losing the £300 payment, which helps with heating bills in the cold winter months.

This is the estimated number of pensioners in the constituency who don't receive pension credit, and so will lose the winter fuel allowance under the government’s plans unless they receive other benefits. The figures were compiled by the House of Commons Library based on data from the Department of Work and Pensions.

A typical pensioner household faces a £670 hit this winter, through rising energy bills, the end of the Pensioner Cost of Living Payment and the Government’s withdrawal of universal Winter Fuel Payments.

If passed, the Liberal Democrat motion would protect local pensioners by blocking the government’s changes and restoring their winter fuel payments. It is set to be tabled as soon as Parliament returns next week and has been backed by all 72 Liberal Democrat MPs.

Across the country, 11 million pensioners are set to lose their winter fuel payment under the government’s plans, including two million that the charity Age UK has said will struggle to afford their energy bills as a result. This is despite the average energy bill being set to rise by £149 a year from October.

The Liberal Democrats are urging the government to think again to protect poorer and more vulnerable pensioners from being forced to choose between eating and heating this winter.

Liberal Democrat MP for Cheadle, Tom Morrison said:

“I’ve heard from countless pensioners across Cheadle worried about losing this vital support and how they will afford their energy bills this winter. 

“Stripping support from many of the poorest pensioners in Cheadle just when energy bills are set to rise again is simply wrong. It could force vulnerable elderly people in our community to choose between eating and heating this winter.

“That is why me and my fellow Liberal Democrat MPs will do everything we can to block these plans as soon as Parliament returns.

“I recognise that the new government faces difficult choices after the appalling mess left by the Conservatives. But a rethink is urgently needed so that poorer and vulnerable pensioners in our community continue to get the support they so desperately need.”

"This is fundamentally the wrong thing to do. Labour should be increasing the windfall tax on energy company profits rather than hitting pensioners with huge bill hikes and less support. Kier Starmer has made a choice to hurt pensioners this winter."

An estimated 800,000 pensioners aren’t claiming the Pension Credits that they are entitled to, the means-tested benefit that will be the new cut off for Winter Fuel Allowance payments. You can find out if your eligible by going to:
www.gov.uk/pension-credit
If you’re a concerned pensioner worried about your finances, contact Age UK Stockport on 0161 480 1211 or email: info@ageukstockport.org.uk for help and advice.

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