The first-month fiasco that shocked the nation threatens to define Labour’s time in power
Rachel Reeves shocked pensioners and the nation with her winter fuel announcement (Image: Getty Images)
The devastating impact of Rachel Reeves’ scrapping of pensioners’ universal entitlement to winter fuel payments on Labour’s reputation is laid bare in new polling. Voters were asked to name one thing Labour has done in power, and the introduction of means-testing for the fuel allowance topped the list.
Veteran campaigner Dennis Reed described the disaster the decision has been for Sir Keir Starmer’s party, warning: “The winter fuel disgrace will go down in history as one of the biggest political blunders ever made by an incoming Government. We warned at the time that this snap decision made by an unprepared Government would define the whole Parliament, and so it is proving.
“Labour made things worse by not reversing the decision once the extent of the opposition was clear and depriving millions of pensioners of essential energy support for the whole of last winter. The Chancellor decided to show her strength by picking on the most vulnerable low-income group without a trade union, but in fact revealed her naivety and lack of political nous.”
Polling from retired Conservative peer Lord Ashcroft found that when voters were asked to name one thing the Government has done, 13% said the introduction of means-testing – ahead of lifting the two-child benefit cap (12%), making U-turns (9%), failing to stop small boat migration (7%), increasing employers’ National Insurance (7%) and pushing up taxes (7%).
Former Conservative Work and Pensions Secretary Thérèse Coffey predicted the fiasco would not vanish from voters’ memories.
She said: “Pensioners will never forgive this betrayal by Keir Starmer, nor forget his cynicism that the first promise he broke was to older people.”
Ex-pensions minister Baroness Altmann said: “The dreadful decision to snatch away winter fuel payments from most pensioners almost as soon as getting into power was a real shock – no warning, no time for pensioners to prepare, no mention in their manifesto, which they published just a short time before. Given how obviously wrong the policy was, how many people it affected and the extent of strain pensioners faced through that winter, it is hardly a surprise that it has stuck in peoples’ minds.”
A Reform UK spokesperson said: “The Government’s decision to means-test the winter fuel allowance showed how utterly out of touch it is with the struggles of many vulnerable elderly people. A Reform Government would fully reinstate the winter fuel payment to all pensioners and give them the support they need.”
Just weeks after taking power in July 2024, Ms Reeves shocked the country by announcing that only households which received pension credit or certain other means-tested benefits would get the fuel payments. But in a major U-turn in June last year, it was announced that three in four pensioners in England and Wales would get the benefit.
The polling suggests Labour has yet to recover from the damage.
Caroline Abrahams of Age UK described the backlash to the policy, saying: “The idea that significant numbers of older people would struggle to stay warm and well through the winter because they couldn’t afford their fuel bills horrified most people of all ages. For all the talk about divisions along age and other lines, when it really mattered, people came together in support of millions of older people who badly needed to keep their winter fuel payment, something for which we at Age UK are extremely grateful and will not forget.”
Britons took to the streets in protest at Rachel Reeves ending universal winter fuel payments (Image: Getty Images)
A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions said: “Supporting pensioners is a top priority, and our commitment to the Triple Lock means millions of older people will see their State Pension rise by up to £2,100. Nine million pensioners will also benefit from the winter fuel payment, and the £150 Warm Home Discount has been expanded to six million households, helping those who need it most with their energy bills.”
Joanna Elson, chief executive of Independent Age, pushed for further help.
She said: “More is needed to support the nearly two million older people living in poverty. We continue to urge the UK Government to introduce a national social tariff for water to ease the burden of rising bills, support older private renters by uprating Local Housing Allowance so that no one has to make dangerous sacrifices to pay their rent, and boost incomes through a comprehensive strategy to ensure people receive all the entitlements they are eligible for.”
