Winter fuel allowance: ‘Why I’m urging the government to think again on cuts’

We don’t chose our inheritance, but we are responsible for shaping our future. After years of neglect, Labour stepped into office to inherit an almighty mess. A £21.9bn blackhole in the economy, projects promised and never funded, and services broken and on their knees.

Cleaning up this utter mess is no easy task, and without taking swift and decisive action, things were set to get worse. I commend the progress made to date, however when you have just a weekend to stop the banks jacking up interest rates, making life hard for all, you have the hardest of decisions to make. The Chancellor did.

However, now stress tested by constituents across the country, it is clear that those with least resilience need more support, while others have broader shoulders.

‘We have to protect all who are struggling’

In the wreckage, we have found 2.1m pensioners living in poverty, too scared to put their heating on for fear of its cost, while oil and gas tycoons rake in tens of billions in profit.

Last winter, according to the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, 4,950 died from having a cold home. Such grotesque inequality may speak to Tory values, but never our own.

We have to protect all who are struggling, ensure that they can get by safely, while rightly Ed Miliband is driving his green energy sprint to decarbonise with cheaper renewable energy by 2030, while retrofitting the homes of the most vulnerable.

The latest shock to the system was yet another spike in the Energy Price Cap, another £149 to pay for heating, 10% more, averaging £1,717 from October.

‘We created the welfare state to be a safety net – we have got to prevent people falling through the gaps’

While many can ride the storm, many can’t. Some of these are frail, they have underlying ill health, and they need to keep their heating on to stay warm and well. The UK Health Security Agency recommends at 18C. This all costs.

As we age, are unwell or both, it is difficult for us to retain heat. Seasonal viruses prey on frailty and before we know it we need a GP, a hospital bed or tragically don’t recover. For others hyperthermia grips.

The fear of not knowing if you can afford your bill prevents you switching the heating on. I know many who have wrapped themselves up in jumpers and duvets to avoid the cost.

One couple in my constituency came off their gas contract altogether, instead investing in a single gas ring to heat up their tins of soup each evening. Others tell me that they have invested in thermals. Some tragically just couldn’t get warm.

The difference this year is that we have a Labour Government. Labour with its deep roots in protecting the most challenged, the most vulnerable in our society.

We created the welfare state to be a safety net, and while the net needs mending, we have got to prevent people falling through the gaps. Our drive to ensure that 880,000 eligible pensioners due the Pension Credit payments register is the right thing to do, as only 63% of those who can do currently. Make sure you do, as it also opens up access to many other benefits.

READ MORE: Ellie Reeves denies cabinet splits over cutting winter fuel allowance

‘Savings will do little if people are unable to keep themselves safe this winter’

However, there are many above the Pension Credit threshold who are making the choice between heating and eating. We need a package of support for them.

The £1.4bn intended savings from ending the universality of the Winter Fuel Payments, as set out in the regulations laid before Parliament on 22 August will do little if people are unable to keep themselves safe this winter. I am calling for a rethink. We must protect people right now, while of course making the right decisions for the longer term.

This is why I am urging Government to think again about scrapping the Winter Fuel Payments. The Social Fund Winter Payment Regulations need to be withdrawn if no alternative can be found.

I have advocated for a ‘social tariff’ so the oil and gas giants who are raking in £10bns in profit can protect those with nothing. Martin Lewis has suggested the payment is made to those on Council Tax bands A – D, a crude measure, but it would get us through winter.

I have also been calling for the Housing Support Fund to continue, so local authorities can provide warm spaces and help those most in need. This fund gave local authorities targeted support to help all who needed more resilience.

Yet funding ends next month, and without the Cost of Living Payments, while the Cost of Living is bearing down on families, I fear many will really struggle. I am in discussions about what else we can do as a community.

READ MORE: Labour MP does not rule out voting against government over cuts to winter fuel payments

‘Failed states fail the most vulnerable’

In reality we have to tackle pensioner poverty, built over a lifetime of inequality. While this longer term thinking won’t solve anything this year, it will certainly help us in times to come. The redistribution of wealth has never been more needed.

In 21^st Century Britain, we now have 14.5m living in poverty, including 4.3m children. York’s seminal work on Poverty through the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, inspired by Seebohm Rowntree, should be our lead. We are a human rights city. We dig deep to find solutions so that all can live in dignity.

In 2024, in a progressive society, energy poverty is yet another reminder that failed states fail the most vulnerable. All I ask is that they are kept warm and well this winter.

This article was originally published on Rachael Maskill’s blog.

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