Sir Keir Starmer announces DWP Winter Fuel Payment u-turn and hands 'more pensioners' £300


Sir Keir Starmer announces DWP Winter Fuel Payment u-turn and hands 'more pensioners' £300

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Sir Keir Starmer announces DWP Winter Fuel Payment u-turn and hands 'more pensioners' £300He says the government will take decisions at the next fiscal event.NewsJames Rodger Content


Editor12:25, 21 May 2025He says the government will take decisions at the next fiscal event. Sir Keir Starmer says he wants 'more pensioners' to get the £300 winter fuel payments in a major


U-turn. The Labour Party government spoke out in the Commons, discussing the eligibility and criteria for the £300 allowance.


Sarah Owen, from the Labour Party, asked what the government will do to help struggling pensions. Starmer says the economy is improving. As it improves, the government wants to make sure


people, including pensioners, feel that difference.


‌ That is why the government wants to ensure “more pensioners” are eligible for winter fuel payments, he said, in a major u-turn. He says the government will take decisions at the next


fiscal event.


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He said: “I recognise that people are still feeling the pressure of the cost of living crisis including pensioners and as the economy improves we want to make sure people feel those


improvements in their days as their lives go forward and that is why we want to ensure that as we go forward more pensioners are eligible for winter fuel payments.


Article continues below “As you would expect we will only make decisions we will afford. That is why we will look at that as part of a fiscal event.”


Ed Davey, the Liberal Democrats leader, said Starmer “teased the house” with his comments about the winter fuel payments. Starmer repeated the point about wanting to ensure that “more


pensioners” are eligible.


It came as Kemi Badenoch grilledthe PM on the rise in inflation, announced this morning. Inflation rose to 3.6% in April, according to the ONS, much higher than the government's target of 2%


and 0.9% rise compared to where it was in March.


Article continues below "We've also learned that the deputy prime minister is on manoeuvres", she said. "He's lost control of the economy. He's lost control of his cabinet", she added.


The Conservative Party leader added: "She's sitting there staring at me. She knew exactly what she was doing when she briefed that into the papers.


"She is demanding eight new tax rises - as if we haven't suffered enough. People out there are struggling, businesses are struggling. People are losing their jobs."