Some will argue this dramatic policy reversal is not quite a 100% U-turn, but if victory hits you in face, it’s best to acknowledge it and move on to the many other challenges facing older people in the UK. The Chancellor’s climbdown is a vindication of the long Silver Voices campaign, with the valuable support of the Express, to restore the winter fuel payment, an objective which many argued was impossible to achieve.
The most important aspect of the U-turn is that the payment will be restored universally to every pensioner in the UK this winter. This automatic payment means that no-one will have to go through the complex and intrusive process of claiming the benefit. Every pensioner household on low and modest incomes, which struggled with their energy bills last winter, is now assured that they will get their vital payment back.
Those individual older people whose income is above £35,000 will have their payment recouped automatically through the tax system, a process which the Chancellor says will not require any action from the individual.
There is a promise to work closely with representative bodies on this process, which we will hold the Treasury to account over. It is important to note that the payment will go to each individual, and household incomes will not be aggregated and taken into account.
There is still the important question of the money that households lost last winter and whether that amount should be refunded to those now eligible for the winter fuel payment.
Many went into debt to family and friends in order to survive. We will consult our members on how we should campaign on that unanswered question.
Let this also be lesson to the Government, hands off the state pension and universal pensioner benefits, unless at your political peril. No means testing of the state pension, no scrapping of the bus pass or free prescriptions, and urgent action to stop the state pension being taxed.
Labour’s recognition of its cruel policy mistake on winter fuel is welcome, but anti-pensioner elements are still active in the Government and Silver Voices will be ever vigilant.
