State pensioners will get extra £1,700 in accounts after Winter Fuel Payment changes

A hand withdrawing money from a cashpoint
-Credit: (Image: Getty)


State pensioners have been informed that they will receive an additional £1,700 in their accounts after the Winter Fuel Payment was discontinued. Labour has pledged to safeguard pensioner incomes by maintaining the triple lock system, which ensures that the State Pension always increases in line with the highest of inflation, wage growth or a default minimum of 2.5 per cent.

From next April, the full rate of the New State Pension will rise from £11,502 annually to approximately £11,962, an increase of £460, due to wage growth being the dominant factor in the triple lock. The full rate of the old Basic State Pension, for those who reached pension age before 2016, will increase from £8,814 to £9,167 per year an annual increase of £353.

Baroness Sherlock, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, stated that many older individuals will see their new State Pension increase by around £1,700 during this Parliament. She was responding to a query from Baroness Altmann regarding the government's impact assessment of removing the Winter Fuel Payment on pensioners whose incomes are slightly above the Pension Credit threshold, and those who are entitled to Pension Credit but do not claim it.

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Chancellor Rachel Reeves has defended the government's changes to the Winter Fuel Payment, which mean that only those on Pension Credit and some other means-tested benefits in mixed-age households will now qualify. As a result of this significant policy revision, the number of pensioners entitled to the allowance will plummet by 10 million - from 11.4 million to just 1.5 million, primarily those claiming Pension Credit.

This measure is projected to yield a saving of approximately £1.4 billion this year, contributing to bridging a £22 billion deficit in Britain's financial landscape, reports Birmingham Live.

Baroness Sherlock said: "The Department continues to maximise opportunities to promote Pension Credit and to raise awareness of its wider benefits and to encourage pensioners to apply. The department uses a range of creative media including TV, press, radio and social media to boost awareness of the benefit. We engage with stakeholders, including other Government departments, councils, and charities, to harness their help and support to raise awareness through their networks and channels.

"The Government is ensuring pensioners are supported through our commitment to protect the Triple Lock, over 12 million pensioners will benefit, with many expected to see their new State Pension increase by around £1700 over the course of this Parliament."

She added: "Additionally, the Government will invest an extra £6.6 billion over this Parliament in clean heat and energy efficiency through the Warm Homes Plan, upgrading five million homes through solutions like low carbon heating and improved insulation to reduce emissions and cut bills.

"The Household Support Fund is also being extended for a further six months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025. An additional £421 million will be provided to enable the extension of the HSF in England, plus funding for the Devolved Governments through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion, as usual."

"The Warm Home Discount scheme in England and Wales provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate on their electricity bill. This winter, we expect over three million households, including over one million pensioners, to benefit under the scheme."

Around 880,000 people who are eligible for Pension Credit are not thought to be receiving it. Anyone who receives it should automatically get winter fuel payments.

A DWP spokesperson said: "The Government has followed its legal and statutory duties ahead of introducing these changes and will continue to do so."