Winter Fuel Payment loss slammed by charities as Budget confirms axe

Pensioners will be ‘severely’ hit by losing Winter Fuel Payments, experts say, as yesterday’s Budget confirmed the benefit would be lost for millions.

The Government stuck to its plans to cut the number of homes getting the Winter Fuel Payment in chancellor Rachel Reeves’s Budget yesterday.

Previously, the Winter Fuel Payment was paid to all pensioners. But these payments have now been cut back so that only those on benefits like Pension Credit will get it from this winter.

The Budget came and went without any mention by the chancellor of reversing the Winter Fuel Payment cuts. 

In fact, Budget documents show that the cuts will save the Government £1.5billion in the 2024 and 2025 tax years, then £1.6billion in 2026, 2027 and 2028 and £1.7billion in 2029.

The Government’s commitment to scrapping the benefit for most pensioners has been criticised by several charities.

Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, said: ‘Nothing in the Budget changes the plight of the four in five pensioners on low and modest incomes set to lose their Winter Fuel Payment this year when they simply cannot afford to do so, and that’s a massive disappointment.

‘The Government could have brought forward measures to safeguard these older people but chose not to, despite compelling evidence showing how severely as many as two and half million in this position will be hit.

‘It comes to something when the best policy option older people on tight budgets now have left is to hope and pray for a mild winter.’

Steve Vaid, chief executive of the Money Advice Trust charity, said: ‘We remain concerned about the impact of the removal of the Winter Fuel Payment from pensioners lower down the income scale. And there was no help on energy arrears, which are now at £3.7billion.

‘With energy prices so high, more and more people are at risk of falling behind. The Government and Ofgem need to bring forward a Help to Repay scheme to bring down energy debt, and introduce an energy social tariff to reduce bills for those on the lowest incomes.’