How many Shropshire pensioners are set to lose winter fuel payments, according to MP
Nearly 100,000 pensioners in Shropshire are set to lose winter fuel payments if the government's policy of means testing the benefit goes ahead, one of the county's MPs has said.
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North Shropshire MP Helen Morgan has backed a motion in Parliament to block government plans to scrap Winter Fuel Payments for some pensioners.
She says analysis shows an estimated 98,121 across Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin including 21,803 pensioners in her North Shropshire constituency are at risk of losing the £300 payment, which helps with heating bills in the cold winter months.
This is the estimated number of pensioners in the constituency who don't receive pension credit, and so will lose the winter fuel allowance under the Government’s plans unless they receive other benefits, Mrs Morgan said. The figures were compiled by the House of Commons Library based on data from the Department of Work and Pensions.
If passed, the Liberal Democrat motion would protect local pensioners by blocking the Government’s changes and restoring their winter fuel payments. It is set to be tabled as soon as Parliament returns next week and has been backed by all 72 Liberal Democrat MPs.
Across the country, 11 million pensioners are set to lose their winter fuel payment under the Government’s plans, including two million that the charity Age UK has said will struggle to afford their energy bills as a result. This is despite the average energy bill being set to rise by £149 a year from October.
The Liberal Democrats are urging the Government to think again to protect poorer and more vulnerable pensioners from being forced to choose between eating and heating this winter.
Helen Morgan, Liberal Democrat MP for North Shropshire, said: “Stripping support from many of the poorest pensioners just when energy bills are set to rise again is simply wrong. It could force vulnerable elderly people to choose between eating and heating when temperatures drop.
“Many pensioners in North Shropshire are already struggling with bills and they are now racked with worry about how they are going to cope this winter.
“The Labour Party has got this wrong and Liberal Democrats will do everything possible to stand up for pensioners and block these plans.
“I appreciate that the new government faces difficult choices due to the mess left by the Conservatives but this is not the answer.
“Our pensioners both need and deserve better.”
