A new government, but the same old callous austerity agenda. The stark “heating or eating” dilemma is about to get much worse for millions of older Britons. Because, less than a month in and the new Labour Party government is already making brutal cuts to welfare. First in the firing line are millions of pensioners – as corporate capitalist eugenicist ‘chancellor of the executioners’ Rachel Reeves does away with winter fuel payments for the majority of them.
Of course, it means hundreds of thousands will suffer fuel poverty as the cold weather begins to bite. Crucially, for many, Labour’s latest sham black hole budget-saving exercise will be a death sentence this winter.
Labour cutting the winter fuel payment to millions
On Monday 29 July, Rachel Reeves announced the government’s plans to restrict the winter fuel payment.
This is a one-off annual winter payment between £250 to £600 that pensioners born before 25 September 1957 currently receive to help with heating bills.
Now, the chancellor has declared Labour will stop this payment for millions of pensioners. In particular, anyone not receiving means-tested benefits like Pension Credit or Universal Credit, will no longer be eligible.
Charity Age UK has calculated that Labour’s move will impact 800,000 older people on very low incomes. Specifically, this is those living on less than £218.25 a week as single pensioners, or £332.95 as couples.
On top of this, it estimated that around a million more pensioners less than £50 above the so-called poverty line will be “hit hard” by the Labour removing the benefit payment. However, the reality is actually much worse than this. The fact is, Labour’s money-saving move will come at an unconscionable cost.
In fuel poverty but not on low income
The intention of course is that people in poverty will still receive the winter fuel payment. Largely, the thinking appears to be that the government can encompass this with those claiming means-tested benefits.
Of course, there are huge problems with this. Firstly, it assumes that all those who could claim means-tested benefits, do claim them. The issue here is that simply isn’t the case. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) already places huge barriers to people accessing these.
Specifically, around 800,000 older people entitled to pension credits don’t actually claim them. This means they probably now won’t be entitled to the winter fuel payment either.
And here’s the other thing, pensioners can be living above what the government classes as income poor, but still experience fuel poverty. This is because there’s a weak correlation between fuel poverty and income deprivation.
There are many reasons for this. For one, as the End Fuel Poverty Coalition has underscored, some older people on higher incomes live in energy inefficient homes.
Chronically ill and disabled pensioners may also need to have the heating up, and for longer periods to protect their health. In addition, their energy bills costs can be higher, to power vital medical aids and equipment.
Pensioners in fuel poverty
Overall, it’s difficult to calculate the number of winter fuel payment recipients that live in fuel poverty. This is because government data on fuel poverty doesn’t quite marry up with the age group eligible for the winter fuel payment, and only looks at the household level.
Fuel poverty statistics use demographic data which separates out households by the age of the eldest occupant. For those able to claim the winter fuel payment, these fall across two demographic groups. These are: people aged 60 to 74, and 75 or over.
If we take just the 75 and over category, since all in that group were over the 67 year threshold for the payment, over 11% of households were facing fuel poverty in 2023. This equated to nearly 450,000 fuel poor households with occupants aged 75 or over.
Moreover, none of this is to even mention that many more people live in so-called “fuel stress” too. This is fuel poverty by any other name – before the Tories changed the goalposts on this. So, there are potentially many more older people barely affording soaring energy costs now, that Labour’s cut will impact.
Winter fuel payment now excluding older disabled people
Then, there’s the fact that many people receive non-means tested benefits. Naturally, the new restrictions mean that they’ll no longer get the winter fuel payment either.
In short, Labour’s plans exclude a range of pensioners claiming attendance allowance. It means that older chronically ill and disabled people will no longer receive the payment if they’re not claiming that benefit as well.
But again, this is where the correlation between income poverty and fuel poverty breaks down. Notably, there’ll be lots of chronically ill and disabled people who are fuel poor, but not matching government definitions for overall deprivation or able to claim means-tested benefits.
In 2023, 13% of households with sick and disabled tenants were fuel poor. Specifically, this was equivalent to over three million households. At least some of these will be pensioners that would have received the winter fuel payment – but now may no longer be eligible.
Labour killing people already
Of course, the horrific impact of Labour’s cruel cut is only too predictable. That is, more older people will die this winter.
Research has tied the winter fuel payment to a significant reduction in deaths. A 2015 study showed that winter fuel payments had slashed excess winter mortality. This is the number of additional winter deaths than those projected. Crucially, it had done so by half.
In other words, restricting the winter fuel payment will kill thousands more older people. Labour knows this, but is ploughing ahead regardless. Reeves also made this announcement the very week the big five fat cat energy firms are gearing up to declare more astronomical profits.
It hasn’t taken long for Starmer’s Labour to reveal that it’s not the party of “change” at all. In government already, it has shown its true-blue Tory colours – because as it turns out, it’s actually the party of “continuity” for the cruel neoliberal austerity status quo.
Practically everyone’s old enough to remember Starmer pledging this:
My Labour Party will always be on the side of pensioners let down by the Tories. pic.twitter.com/uMKAtkInL0
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) April 30, 2024
Needless to say, that hasn’t aged well.
The new government is essentially consigning hundreds of thousands of older people to fuel poverty. And it will push more pensioners into it with its disgraceful plans. As a result, many more will die this winter that wouldn’t have – and it’s all on Labour’s hands.
Feature image via the Canary
