Rachel Reeves has come under fire following the decision to cut winter fuel payments, with experts arguing she carried out “no impact assessment” before making the decision.
According to the Telegraph, a legal note from the Department for Work and Pensions accompanying the upcoming changes said: “A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as there is no impact, or no significant impact, anticipated on the private, public or voluntary sectors.”
Despite the admission, the statement was published in Parliament on Thursday and was signed by Labour’s pensions minister, Emma Reynolds.
In July, the Chancellor announced that pensioners who do not receive pension credit or similar means-tested benefits will no longer be able to claim annual winter fuel payments of between £100 and £300. Around 10 million Britons will be affected.
Experts have warned that the measure will see retirees suffer a brutal and sharp increase in energy prices this winter.
According to The Telegraph, Baroness Ros Altmann, a Conservative peer and pensions expert, said: “Something like this would normally not only need a full impact assessment, it would also have to go to the Social Security Advisory Committee, and they completely ignored that too.
“There was no warning about it — it wasn’t in their manifesto.”
Pensioners themselves have been furious about the plans. One military veteran told GB News: “It will hit me the same way it will hit everyone else. I’m not getting benefits, I’m retired. I have an army pension because I served 22 years in the army, so I can’t claim benefits.”
Meanwhile, Caroline Abrahams, director of Age UK, argued that reducing winter fuel payments is “reckless and wrong”, particularly in the context of Ofgem’s announcement that the energy price cap will rise.
A government spokesman said: “This is incorrect. We are absolutely committed to supporting retirees and giving them the dignity and security they deserve in retirement. That is why, through our commitment to protecting triple lockMore than 12 million retirees will see their state pensions rise by almost £1,000 over the next five years.
“But given the dire state of public finances we have inherited, it is only right that we target support to those who need it most, while we take the tough decisions needed to fix the fundamentals of our economy.
“More than one million pensioners will continue to receive the winter fuel payment and eligible retirees will also be able to benefit from the £150 discount scheme for heated homes from October to help with their energy bills over the winter.
“We are urging retirees to come forward and check their eligibility for pension credit to ensure as many people in need as possible have access to this support.”