Lee Anderson accuses Labour of ‘robbing pensioners’ to fund local weather agenda | Politics | News | EUROtoday

Rachel Reeves is “robbing” pensioners to pay for Labour’s local weather change agenda, Lee Anderson has declared.

The Reform UK MP attacked the Chancellor’s choice to take away Winter Fuel Payments for 10 million pensioners.

And the Labour Party’s bombshell coverage might additionally spark embarrassment for Sir Keir Starmer, with Ms Reeves’s quantity two within the Treasury, Darren Jones, beforehand combating modifications to the Winter Fuel Payment.

Amid rumours final 12 months of modifications, Mr Jones, who’s now Chief Secretary to the Treasury, wrote to former Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to warn that pensioners might be alarmed by proposed modifications.

And Mr Anderson sarcastically mentioned of the modifications: “It’s robbery.

“So Labour want to give away £13 million to other countries to chase their climate change agenda.

“But the good news is they are robbing pensioners of their winter fuel payments.”

Campaigners accused Labour of deceptive voters about its plans and mentioned the celebration must be “ashamed” of concentrating on struggling retirees.

Ms Reeves is axing the common winter gasoline allowance, which is £200 for pensioners below 80 and £300 for these over, with fast impact to save lots of £1.5 billion.

Instead, solely retirees claiming pension credit score and another advantages might be eligible.

It means the 11.4 million individuals presently in receipt will drop to simply 1.5 million.

The transfer means there might be a cliff-edge with many pensioners simply above the breadline left having to seek out lots of of additional kilos this 12 months.

Silver Voices director Dennis Reed mentioned: “The scrapping of the winter fuel allowance for most pensioners is a targeted attack on those who have devoted their working lives to this nation, building the economy and our welfare state, and who are least able to fight back.

“At a time when energy prices are so high this is a heartless measure. Labour should be ashamed of accepting more Labour votes in the recent election, while hiding their plans to attack pensioner benefits.

“It was always suspicious that there was no commitment on pensioner benefits in their manifesto.

“They have also been disingenuous on the question of social care reform, indicating during the election campaign that they would continue with the Tory cap on lifetime care costs and now dropping any reform on social care charging during this Parliament.

“Blaming these planned decisions on the Conservatives does not wash. Money is being taken from the pockets of hard-up pensioners to pay more to those with strong trade unions.

“Silver Voices will lead the fight to expose the hypocrisy and cruelty of these measures.”

And the Government might be embarrassed by Mr Jones, simply months in the past, saying proposals to take away the winter gasoline funds for hundreds of thousands of pensioners will trigger further ache and heartache.

A letter despatched to Ms Reeves’s predecessor, Jeremy Hunt, said: “Pensioners might be deeply involved about such hypothesis, particularly forward of winter, and anxious that their incomes could also be below menace from this Government.

“Pensioners are already having to deal with dramatic will increase to the price of residing, notably in terms of their power payments.

“The worth of gasoline has risen by 60% over the previous two years, whereas the value of electrical energy has risen by 40%.

Ms Reeves additionally axed a long-planned cap on social care prices that was because of come into pressure subsequent 12 months.

The earlier authorities had put in place an 86,000 restrict on the quantity anybody in England must spend private care over their lifetime.