Families fume after Government accused of 'freezing grandmothers at Christmas'
Cornwall Live readers have been voicing their disapproval of the Government's recent move to slash the winter fuel allowance for a majority of pensioners. The decision has sparked worry among councillors and locals, particularly regarding its impact on Cornwall's elderly population, notably grandmothers.
Councillor Philip Desmonde drew attention to the potential fallout, asserting, "It is part of the council's mission statement that 'age well' is at the heart of all that this administration stands for."
He also questioned the absence of an impact assessment from the Government, calling for a comprehensive evaluation of how the cutback will affect pensioners.
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Councillor Andy Virr conveyed his dismay over the Government's approach, linking inadequate heating and subpar housing conditions to health complications stemming from cold dwellings during the winter months. He stressed the necessity for residents to seek guidance and claim all available benefits to mitigate the financial strain brought on by the reduced allowance.
The work of Age Concern was recognised, including their campaign to mitigate the effects of the Government's policy change.
Labour's proposed means-testing approach for the benefit has sparked worries over eligibility and application issues. Councillor Linda Taylor pointed out the availability of funds under the Household Support Fund to assist low-income households but criticised the removal of the winter fuel allowance as harmful to vulnerable individuals.
She emphasised that claiming pension credit is a right, not charity, and encouraged residents not to let pride prevent them from accessing vital support.
Over on the CornwallLive Facebook page, one of our readers, Lindy Hemsley wrote: "As long as their pockets are full they're happy." Along with Michele Lamb who says: "That’s what Labour are relying on, getting the family to help . But if the family are not in a position to help what with everything going up. Starmer should be ashamed. But he is not as he still gets his winter fuel allowance."
While in the comments section, Ballboy13 adds: "A lot of the Tory councillors are up in arms about this as they are probably losing the winter fuel allowance themselves. Would be interesting to know whether the likes of Desmonde and Taylor have previously received the allowance and whether they declared an interest before discussing it. Interestingly they never seemed to complain when their own Tory Government was cutting left, right and centre causing major hardship for many people and increasing levels of child poverty. But I guess that wouldn't have affected them."
Streakingstreeting writes: "Not only were tory councillors not complaining about the theft of public money by the national government but also pensioners were not complaining either. They have their protective bubble of the triple lock and they didn't care about anyone but themselves. Now it's toys out of the pram with wild implausible theories of pensioners dying in their hundreds of thousands because some won't get an annual payment of £300. Call it what it is, hysteria."
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RickOshay says: "It made no sense for WFA to be universal when the vast majority of pensioners have enough income to pay for their own heating. There will need to be some adjustments to the threshold for those who just miss out at the moment, and there are other benefits that pensioners can apply for. What rarely gets reported are all those pensioners who used the WFA to top up their holiday fund."
Triggerandhisdoggo comments: "As far as government's own-goals go, this one is spectacular."
Breton is all for it: "Well done Sir Kier, starting to clamp down on benefits scroungers as many of us on here have been asking for. If people don’t plan financially for their retirement, they shouldn’t expect our taxes to bail them out. Plenty of jobs out there."
Happydaz disagrees: "Yeah, work them till they die. Plenty of old people have worked all there lives and paid there taxes but still struggle financially. Obviously it's easy to gloat when your on the opposite side mate."
While Sambadude says: "Difficult subject, plenty of pensioners have plenty of money, some don’t. They still have triple lock on their pensions, working folks dont get gtd annual increases in pay."
Do you agree or disagree with the proposed cuts? Have your say on this hot topic in the comments below or HERE.