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In spite of promises they made before the election, the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, and Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, have announced they are scrapping Winter Fuel Payments for the majority of pensioners from this winter.
Across Wirral, almost 60,000 pensioners will not receive the payment which, until July, they had been led to believe they would receive, just as they have every year since it was introduced in 1997.
Instead, only those pensioners who qualify for Pension Credit will receive the Winter Fuel Payments. Recently, it has been revealed the Government failed to carry out an assessment of the impact this would have.
Among those most affected:
- 2.7 million people aged over 80 - who lose £300 a year, even though their heating bills are often higher
- Those with incomes just a few pounds above the £218.15 a week threshold for Pension Credit
- 71% of disabled pensioners will lose the payments
Wirral's Conservative Councillors are contacting people who may be affected by Labour's decision, to hear their views and, for those that need help, to make them aware of other possible ways to increase their incomes or reduce their costs.
