Telford council to ‘demand’ Labour government ‘reverse’ winter fuel allowance cut

Pensioners are no longer entitled to the age related payment of up to £300 per year unless they receive certain benefits, including Pension Credit.

The move was sparked after the Conservative opposition group had put forward a winter fuel motion at Thursday’s meeting of the full Telford & Wrekin Council.

In their motion they had argued for the council to “revisit financial reserves” to consider giving pensioners “further financial aid.”

The council is giving some 6,000 pensioners £100 shopping vouchers this year and the Labour group has accepted in the wording of its amendment that “more needs to be done.”

Labour members proposed an amendment to the Tory motion which took out criticisms of the governing party as “cruel” and replaced them with attacks on the Conservatives after they “wrecked” the public finances.

But in the final motion, accepted by the council, the group agreed that the council will write to the Chancellor to “demand this decision is reversed as soon as reasonably possible.”

Councillor Richard Overton, the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Highways, Housing & Enforcement, claimed that the Conservatives had showed “no compassion” in 14 years when foodbank use increased, had the “Liz Truss budget” and witnessed “rising homelessness”.

But Councillor Carolyn Healy said that restricting winter fuel allowance payments to those on Pension Credit meant that “some pensioners were just above the threshold and this has hit them.”

The council resolved to “deplore” the “necessity of the original decision to strip pensioners of their heating allowance and write to the chancellor.”

But they added that any re-instated benefit should not go to ‘millionaire pensioners or those who live abroad.”

The motion went as far as saying that they would “join the Unite Union’s campaign to force the current Labour Government to change its mind when reasonably possible.”

Coucillor Overton said he was a member of Unite and supports the trades union’s motion.

Conservative Councillor Andrew Eade (Church Aston & Lilleshall) said he thinks demanding that the situation should change “when reasonably possible” means that “it is not going to happen.”

Councillor Eade had called the Labour Government “cruel” for “picking the pockets” of pensioners.

Councillor Eade said the Government itself had estimated that 4,000 pensioners across the country will die this winter, and he called the change a “callous act” made by “rich wealthy politicians who are inflicting inhuman cruelty” on pensioners..

Independent councillor Peter Scott (Newport West) called on the Government to “make amends”.

“We are the voice of these people, let us represent them,” he said.

Lib Dem Councillor Thomas Janke (Newport South) said the threshold for receiving the winter fuel allowance was “far too low” and the Government had made a “dire mis-step”

He said there should be a windfall tax on the energy companies instead while Councillor Scott said money that goes “overseas and on war” should be looked at.