Details on when the Government could make a U-turn on £300 winter fuel payments to restore them for more pensioners could come to light within a matter of weeks, Angela Rayner has suggested. The Deputy Prime Minister indicated the Spending Review by Chancellor Rachel Reeves on June 11 could be when an announcement is made on winter fuel.
Limiting the payment to only those in receipt of a benefit called pension credit was one of the earliest moves made by the Labour Government, as it set out plans to deal with what it said was a £22 billion “black hole” in the public finances. Sir Keir Starmer said at Prime Minister’s Questions this week he wants to restore winter fuel payments to more pensioners, claiming the UK’s improving economic prospects could allow for the move at the next “fiscal event”.
Many in Westminster took this to mean the budget in the autumn. But on Sunday, Sir Keir’s deputy Ms Rayner suggested it could come sooner.
She told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips on Sky News: “I think that we’ve got the upcoming Spending Review, and I’m sure that the Chancellor will set it out when we’ve got the opportunity, at the first opportunity, she will set out what we’ll be able to do.” Asked if this means details on the winter fuel payment will definitely be announced at the Spending Review, Ms Rayner added: “I don’t know, but I so.
“I mean, the Prime Minister has announced it, so logically to me that indicates that the Prime Minister wants to do something in this area. And if the Prime Minister wants to do that, I’m sure the Chancellor is going to look at how we can achieve that.”
Ministers are considering restoring the payment to all but the wealthiest pensioners, according to the Sunday Times, but could face delays rolling it out this winter due to ageing computer systems. The Sunday Telegraph meanwhile reported Reform UK leader Nigel Farage will commit to restoring the winter fuel payment in full, as well as scrapping the two-child benefit cap.
The move is an attempt to outflank Labour with its traditional working class supporters, Reform sources told the Telegraph. “It’s going to be these very same working people that will vote Reform at the next election and kick Labour out of Government,” Mr Farage is expected to say in a speech in the coming week.
Ministers have reportedly been considering scrapping the cap, which restricts the amount of benefits parents can claim for more than two of their children, as part of their child poverty strategy. Critics of the cap say removing it would be one of the most significant ways to prevent child poverty.
The plan, which was due to be published in the spring, is now set to come in the autumn so it can be aligned with the budget. Ms Rayner suggested Reform UK does not have a fully-costed plan behind its commitment. “Nigel Farage comes up with lots of ideas, they’re not necessarily good ideas, and he doesn’t know how he’s going to pay for them,” she told Sky News.
Elsewhere, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called for the immediate restoration of the winter fuel payment. Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg, she said: “We need to restore it right now.
“We would never have taken the winter fuel (payment) away. We kept it for 14 years – we brought in the triple lock – we look after pensioners.” She also defended the two-child benefit cap, describing it as “absolutely the right thing to do”.
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