Georgia Gould defends Winter Fuel Allowance cuts to Brent constituents

Unite Pensioners protest against Winter Fuel Allowance Cut

Georgia  Gould, the recently elected MP for the new constituency of Queens Park and Maida Vale, that includes three Brent wards, has defended the cut in Pensioner's Winter Fuel Allowance.

She writes:

 

Dear constituent,

 

Thank you for your email and setting out your thoughts on the Chancellor’s decision on Winter Fuel Payments. I apologise for the delay in responding to you, setting up my office has created a significant backlog in correspondence and I appreciate your patience. 

 

I can assure you this was not a decision that was taken lightly. The fact is that the previous Conservative government knowingly and recklessly overspent on departmental budgets, then covered it up, called an election and ran away from the problem, leaving a £22bn black hole in our country’s finances. Sadly, this means the Chancellor has had to make some really tough choices. As the Conservatives made commitment after commitment without knowing where the money was going to come, it is now up to the new Government to clean up the mess and take action to ensure the scale of the inheritance they have left us does not continue to threaten our economic stability.

 

Again, while it was a difficult decision, linking Winter Fuel Payment to Pension Credit means that payments are better targeted at those most in need. Of course, some low-income pensioners still aren’t claiming Pension Credit <https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator> , and we are increasing our work with external partners and local authorities to boost uptake and target additional support to the poorest pensioners. This would then allow them to receive Winter Fuel Payment alongside other benefits – hundreds of pounds that could really help them.

  

For those who are not eligible for Pension Credit, the Chancellor has repeated Labour’s manifesto commitment to protecting the triple lock. This will, over the next five years, mean that over 12 million pensioners will see their State Pension increase by thousands of pounds. 

 

We are also working to tackle the cost of living crisis by saving money for citizens across the board including through our Warm Homes Plan which will support investment in insulation and low carbon heating – saving households money on their gas and electricity bills. Our ultimate aim is to bring stability back to our economy and to people’s lives, as creating economic stability benefits pensioners who are on fixed incomes with little or no means to supplement their income. 

 

Whilst I understand things remain tough, I hope this goes some way in reassuring you that we are trying our absolute best to support everyone with the resources we have available. Thank you again for your email.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Georgia Gould MP
Member of Parliament (Queen’s Park and Maida Vale)