‘We dwell in England’s coldest village – Rachel Reeves’ winter gasoline axe is apparent merciless’ | UK | News | EUROtoday

Residents in England’s coldest village have slammed Rachel Reeves for ditching their winter gasoline allowance.

The disproportionately aged neighborhood of Shap, Cumbria, recorded lows of -11.2C on Wednesday, the coldest wherever within the nation this winter.

One fourth of Shap residents are over 65 and would have certified for the winter gasoline fee earlier than Rachel Reeves axed it in July, a call that has left them and round 10 million others as much as £300 worse off than final yr.

The chancellor has claimed the lower, which nonetheless supplies funds for these claiming pension credit score or different means-tested advantages, would save the Treasury round £1.6 billion annually and assist to plug a “black hole” within the public funds.

But whereas such cost-cutting concepts could look good on paper, locals have accused each Ms Reeves and Sir Keir Starmer of constructing damaging choices from “their ivory towers”, indifferent from the realities of those that can not now afford to warmth their houses amid the newest chilly spell.

One Cumbria villager instructed The Telegraph: “My neighbour is 74 and he’s struggling. He lives on his own at his farm, he’s got no support and he lost his winter fuel allowance this year.

“His pension isn’t worth the paper it’s written on, he hasn’t got the central heating working and now his only source of heating is some electric heaters.”

Matt Brereton, a Conservative councillor at Westmorland and Furness Council, added: “I think [Starmer and Reeves] would do well to come and visit some people here to see how difficult it is.

“But so far, I don’t get the impression that they are of a mind to change their policy, which is now coming home to roost.

“There’s an element of ivory towers in this. They should get out of them – they don’t seem keen to come out to see with their own eyes.”

Former chief of the Liberal Democrats and MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale Tim Farron additionally described Shap as “a wonderful warm community [that is] facing arctic temperatures [alongside] many other places in Cumbria”.

“The community has an above average number of older people, many of whom are on low incomes and who are at serious risk from the severe cold,” he added.

“It’s a reminder that the Government’s decision to scrap the winter fuel allowance is cruel and dangerous, they must reverse this dreadful decision immediately.”

Health Secretary Wes Streeting accepted that the withdrawal of winter gasoline funds “might be unpopular” final week after urging folks to show their heating on as January ushered in a decisive drop within the mercury.

He defended the controversial choice to chop the profit on Sky News.

He stated: “They might be unpopular decisions now, but I hope they’ll be decisions that in the longer run people thank us for when they see the country improving, when they see waiting times in hospitals falling, when they see children having enough teachers in the classroom and breakfast clubs, when there are more police on the streets, all of the change that we want to deliver, which isn’t easy given the scale of the challenge in the country, but that’s what we’re focused on in 2025.”

The larger monetary image might be of little consolation to shivering 70 and 80-year-olds in north west England this weekend, nonetheless – with a chilly climate well being alert for the entire nation in place till Tuesday.

Andy Beeforth, from the Cumbria Community Foundation stated: “It’s not unusual for between 300 and 500 older people to die in the winter in Cumbria because they can’t afford to heat their homes or conditions that are linked to that.

“Absolutely there could be more this year…People live in older traditional properties made of stone and there’s not a great deal you can do to insulate them.”

The NHS web site’s steerage means that pensioners ought to have their heating set at 18C or above to mitigate well being dangers – one thing that might not be potential for some this yr.

A examine from Age UK in December recommended that over 77% of pensioners spent their winter gasoline allowances on gasoline prices in 2023, whereas 24% used the cash to warmth up meals.

The Government has stated it’s dedicated to supporting pensioners, pointing to an increase of as much as £1,900 in state pensions this parliament via the triple lock association.

A spokesperson instructed the PA News Agency: “Over a million pensioners will still receive the winter fuel payment, and our drive to boost pension credit take up has already seen a 152% increase in claims.

“Many others will also benefit from the £150 warm home discount and cold weather payments this winter, while our extension of the Household Support Fund will help with the cost of food, heating and bills.”