Clarity needed over winter fuel payment u-turn, says DUP MP Jim Shannon
DUP MP Jim Shannon has urged the government to make clear who will benefit as a result of their U-turn to reinstate the winter fuel payment for some pensioners this winter.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves told reporters yesterday that “more people will get winter fuel payment this winter”, adding that further details will be announced “as soon as we possibly can”.
Ministers decided to limit the payment, worth up to £300, to only the poorest pensioners in one of its first acts of government.
The move was aimed at addressing what the government said was a £22 billion ‘black hole’ in the public finances.
But last month in a partial U-turn, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer suggested he wanted to see the payment go to more pensioners.
Mr Shannon yesterday said the government “must spell out who will receive this payment and when”.
He said: “The decision to withdraw the payment to so many pensioners was wrong … Here in Northern Ireland, the DUP Communities Minister, Gordon Lyons, stepped in to help when Westminster failed to act, providing £100 to pensioners who were left out in the cold by Labour’s decision.
“The government has said the universal payment will not return which is deeply regrettable, but they have not explained how they will decide who qualifies. That lack of clarity is deeply unhelpful. People need to know if they are eligible.”