By senior national officer for equalities Josie Irwin
It’s clear that the Labour government has inherited a mess from the Tories and that tough decisions must be taken to get the economy back on track.
However, the proposal to withdraw the winter fuel payment from all except those pensioners receiving pension credit is deeply concerning. Older people, who have budgeted for the allowance, have had the rug pulled from under them just as winter approaches.
UNISON knows that, while there are some wealthier pensioners who don’t need the help and would readily say so, restricting eligibility to those receiving pension credit means that that too many pensioners living in poverty will fall between the cracks.
We’ve re-published our calculator to check your benefits, so retired members can check whether they are entitled to pension credits, and concentrating on ensuring those pensioners likely to be worst affected get the benefits they are entitled to. The National Pensioners Convention, to which UNISON is affiliated, has also launched a campaign on the issue, as has Independent Age.
But UNISON has always been against means testing, and we’ll speak up for our retired members as we do for working members – including on the winter fuel allowance.
We’ve now set our concerns to the government directly. With energy bills about to increase, it’s just not right to withdraw the payment and leave so many older people worried about how they will cope. Not to mention the potential public health crisis and the likely strain on the NHS. We’re urging the chancellor to think again and soften the approach.