Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced that many more pensioners will now receive the Winter Fuel Payment.
Everyone over the state pension age in England and Wales with an income of, or below, £35,000 a year, will now receive the Winter Fuel Payment. The government said this means 9 million pension-age households will now receive the benefit.
National Energy Action Head of Policy and Public Affairs Matt Copeland says, ‘We welcome this new clarity and certainty concerning the Winter Fuel Payment, and it is a relief that it will now go to so many more pension-age households who really need it.
‘We mustn’t forget about low-income working-age households, many of whom are struggling to afford their energy bills – they also need more direct energy bill support.
‘The Spending Review can provide this deeper support to directly reduce bills as well as a much more structural solution to fuel poverty by making our homes far more energy efficient.’