I will this afternoon vote against Labour’s plan to cut winter fuel payments for pensioners in Brentwood and Ongar after the Conservatives forced a Labour u-turn on holding a vote in Parliament.
Under Labour's original plan to axe the payments for more than 10 million older people across the country, MPs would not be able to debate the proposal in Parliament.
But now, following strong pressure from me and my fellow Conservative MPs, and an outcry from people across the country, the decision to end the payments will be discussed and vote on by every MP in the country.
And it means the Government will be forced to defend their cruel plan before a vote and will reveal which MPs are prepared to punish thousands of pensioners in their constituencies.
Pensioners in Brentwood and Ongar will lose between £200 and £300 annually to help with their heating bills during the winter, if Labour MPs back the plan.
I have made it clear I strongly believe the Labour Government is wrong to scrap the Winter Fuel Payment for pensioners. Now we have forced Labour into a vote, I will be standing up for pensioners here and support the Conservative motion against the cruel cuts.
While Labour is giving their union paymasters a payrise, yet feel happy to cut vital payments to pensioners, it tells you all you need to know about the Government's priorities as we head towards Autumn and Winter. Rachel Reeves must reverse this decision so that those who worked hard and saved all of their life, live with dignity and security in retirement.
Between 2010 and 2023, the Conservatives had lifted over 200,000 pensioners out of absolute poverty. The Conservative Government’s unprecedented cost of living support following Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine also prevented 400,000 pensioners from falling into absolute poverty after housing costs in 2022-23.
