This week the government confirmed that nine million pensioners in England and Wales with an annual income of £35,000 or less will now be eligible for the winter fuel payment.
Richard Fuller MP commented:
Last Summer I called out the decision by the Chancellor to remove fuel payments for pensioners. It was not a choice I would have made but for the new Labour government this was their clear indication of being tough and positioning Rachel Reeves as the “Iron Chancellor”.
Well no longer. This u-turn is unfunded and means the government has to find an additional £1.25bn per year to correct the mess in their finances which their own decisions have made. And the Chancellor now looks weak: a pushover for even the lamest of Labour backbenchers who, no doubt, will push her to spend more on benefits and the like.
Government borrowing is already £14.6bn higher than their forecast in March – just three months ago. This government is addicted to borrowing and taxes – so brace yourselves for more taxes come the Autumn.
The government has stated that the Winter Fuel Payment for 2025 to 2026 will be made to everyone in England and Wales born before 22 September 1959, unless people choose not to get it.
The payments will be made automatically but if your income is over £35,000, the Winter Fuel Payment will be recovered later through HMRC.
The government has said that further details of the 2025 to 2026 payment will be available by the end of June 2025.
