Rachael Maskell urged the government to review the decision after it was revealed on Friday (August 23) that the energy price cap would rise by 10 per cent from October.
Around 10 million pensioners are set to lose out on winter fuel payments as the new government restricts the benefit to only those receiving pension credit.
The move was announced last month by Chancellor Rachel Reeves as part of a package of measures designed to tackle a £22 billion “black hole” in this year’s budget.
“We know that the oil and gas giants made tens of billions of pounds in profit, and when you think that old people are going to be making that consideration of whether or not they put their heating on this winter, it’s of deep, deep concern,” Ms Maskell told BBC Radio 4’s Today.
Rachael Maskell, MP for York Central (Image: Danny Lawson/PA Wire)
The Labour MP said she commended the government for trying to make sure up to 880,000 pensioners eligible for pension credit sign up so they can get winter fuel payments, but said it was “insufficient for those people just above the pension credit threshold”.
She also questioned whether Parliament would have time to fully debate the measures under the current timetable for the regulations to come in on Monday, September 16.
“[The measures] weren’t a manifesto [pledge], and for that reason, I really urge the government to think again about how it’s going to protect the most vulnerable people in our society, our pensioners, this winter.”
Restricting winter fuel payment to pensioners ‘reckless and wrong’, says charity boss
Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, said restricting the winter fuel payment to those on pension credit was “reckless and wrong” and “spells disaster for pensioners on low and modest incomes”.
Both the Conservatives and the Greens have also called for winter fuel payments to be made available to all pensioners this winter following Ofgem’s announcement.
Shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho said: “Because they weren’t honest about their plans, that means millions of pensioners will have made no plans to deal with higher energy bills this winter.”
Means testing the winter fuel payment is expected to save the government £1.4 billion this year, which Labour said was necessary to make up the gap between the previous government’s spending plans and the money that was made available to fund them.
Labour has also criticised the previous government for failing to invest in energy efficiency and renewable power.
“This price increase is the harvest of 14 years of Tory neglect and failure to prepare and invest in British-owned clean energy,” a party spokesperson said.
“While they were quick to blame everybody but themselves during the energy crisis, the Tories dragged their feet on energy security and took a hammer to the renewable energy sector, with working families still paying the price.”
