{"id":126120,"date":"2024-09-02T11:24:12","date_gmt":"2024-09-02T11:24:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/09\/02\/sir-keir-starmer-cutting-winter-fuel-payments-will-stabilise-the-economy\/"},"modified":"2024-09-02T11:24:12","modified_gmt":"2024-09-02T11:24:12","slug":"sir-keir-starmer-cutting-winter-fuel-payments-will-stabilise-the-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/09\/02\/sir-keir-starmer-cutting-winter-fuel-payments-will-stabilise-the-economy\/","title":{"rendered":"Sir Keir Starmer: Cutting winter fuel payments will stabilise the economy"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align:center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"432\" src=\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/e3.365dm.com\/24\/08\/768x432\/skynews-keir-starmer-press_6667934.jpg?20240827102700&amp;fit=768,432&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Sir Keir Starmer: Cutting winter fuel payments will stabilise the economy\" title=\"Sir Keir Starmer: Cutting winter fuel payments will stabilise the economy\" \/><\/div><p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-component-name=\"ui-article-body\" data-highlight-intro=\"true\">\n<p>Sir Keir Starmer has defended cutting the winter fuel allowance for 10 million pensioners as he faces pressure to rethink the move.<\/p>\n<p>The government announced last month the universal payment to pensioners, worth between \u00a3100 and \u00a3300 a year, would be <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/news.sky.com\/story\/chancellor-rachel-reeves-scraps-some-winter-fuel-payments-as-she-reveals-cuts-to-fill-black-hole-in-public-finances-13186834\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">restricted to just those who receive pension credit<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Sir Keir and Chancellor Rachel Reeves have been heavily criticised for the move, including by some Labour MPs and Age UK.<\/p>\n<p>But the prime minister said on Monday: &#8220;We have found a \u00a322bn black hole in the economy. And we&#8217;ve got to fix it.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;What we&#8217;re not going to do is pretend it isn&#8217;t there or paper over it. That&#8217;s what the last government did, and it made it worse. That means we&#8217;ve got to make tough choices.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t want to cut the winter fuel allowance. I don&#8217;t think anybody in the government wants to do that. But we&#8217;ve got to fix the foundations of our economy.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"sdc-article-widget sdc-site-video callfn\" data-account-id=\"6058004172001\" data-amp-iframe-embed=\"\" data-asset-id=\"1f0ed37f-8755-464e-89c5-3399fa22e38b\" data-asset-path=\"\" data-asset-version=\"\" data-autoplay=\"false\" data-auth-config=\"\" data-caption=\"Are we set for tax rises?&#10;\" data-clip-type=\"\" data-component-name=\"sdc-site-video\" data-competition=\"\" data-copy-url-text=\"URL copied to clipboard\" data-fn=\"sdc-site-video\" data-id=\"id_1f0ed37f-8755-464e-89c5-3399fa22e38b\" data-is-live-stream=\"false\" data-lite=\"true\" data-options=\"\" data-originator-id=\"51\" data-originator-handle=\"brightcove-news-gb\" data-package-name=\"\" data-provider=\"brightcove\" data-player-id=\"RC9PQUaJ6\" data-playsinline=\"\" data-sensitive=\"false\" data-sdc-id=\"6668425\" data-sdc-video-id=\"1f0ed37f-8755-464e-89c5-3399fa22e38b\" data-sport-category=\"\" data-state=\"loading\" data-token-state=\"none\" data-video-ad-unit=\"\" data-video-blacklisted-originator-ids=\"\" data-video-id=\"ref:1f0ed37f-8755-464e-89c5-3399fa22e38b\" data-video-type=\"\" data-auto-pause-on-not-visible=\"true\" tabindex=\"-1\" data-closed-captions-position=\"middle-third\" data-show-closed-captions=\"true\" data-show-pip=\"true\" data-show-live-stream-scrubber=\"true\">\n<div class=\"sdc-site-video__inner\">\n<div class=\"sdc-site-video__content\" data-role=\"bridge-controller\" style=\"padding-bottom: calc(100% \/ ());\">\n<p class=\"sdc-site-video__accessibility-message\" data-role=\"accessibility-message\">Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player<\/p>\n<p>              <span aria-hidden=\"true\" data-role=\"poster\" class=\"sdc-site-video__poster\"><\/p>\n<p>              <span class=\"sdc-site-video__loader\"\/><br \/>\n                <span class=\"sdc-site-video__time\">2:46<\/span><br \/>\n              <\/span><\/p>\n<p>              <video id=\"id_1f0ed37f-8755-464e-89c5-3399fa22e38b\" data-embed=\"default\" data-application-id=\"\" class=\"video-js sdc-site-video__tag\" controls=\"\" playsinline=\"\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"sdc-site-video__caption ui-media-caption\">\n<p>              <span class=\"ui-media-caption__caption-text\" data-role=\"caption-text\">Are we set for tax rises?<br \/>\n<\/span><br \/>\n            <\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>     <a href=\"https:\/\/news.sky.com\/download-app\" target=\"blank\" data-tracking-label=\"ui-app-promo-download-link\" class=\"ui-app-promo sdc-article-widget\" data-type=\"\" data-component-name=\"ui-app-promo\" rel=\"noopener\"><\/p>\n<p>    <\/a><\/p>\n<p>He said after fixing the foundations of the economy &#8220;we can build a build a better future that pensioners and so many other people voted for in this election&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This is a tough decision, not a decision I want to make, but I&#8217;m absolutely determined will stabilise the economy and fix the foundations,&#8221; he added.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Read more from Sky News:<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/news.sky.com\/story\/pensioners-face-daunting-task-of-answering-243-question-form-to-get-winter-fuel-payment-13205414\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">243-question form to get winter payment<\/a><\/strong><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/news.sky.com\/story\/winter-fuel-payment-changes-are-you-still-eligible-13187277\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Are you still eligible for the payment?<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"sdc-article-widget sdc-article-strapline sdc-article-strapline--default-layout\" data-component-name=\"sdc-article-strapline\">\n<div class=\"sdc-article-strapline__link\">\n<div class=\"sdc-article-strapline__image-wrap\">\n                <picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/e3.365dm.com\/24\/03\/320x180\/skynews-gfxwhatsapppromo-gfxwhatsapp_6490206.png 320w, https:\/\/e3.365dm.com\/24\/03\/640x380\/skynews-gfxwhatsapppromo-gfxwhatsapp_6490206.png 640w\" media=\"(max-width: 480px)\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/e3.365dm.com\/24\/03\/256x256\/skynews-gfxwhatsapppromo-gfxwhatsapp_6490206.png 256w, https:\/\/e3.365dm.com\/24\/03\/512x512\/skynews-gfxwhatsapppromo-gfxwhatsapp_6490206.png 512w\" media=\"(min-width: 481px)\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/e3.365dm.com\/24\/03\/512x512\/skynews-gfxwhatsapppromo-gfxwhatsapp_6490206.png\" alt=\"Follow Sky News on WhatsApp\" class=\"sdc-article-strapline__image\"\/><br \/>\n                <\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"sdc-article-strapline__body\">\n                <span class=\"sdc-article-strapline__title\">Follow Sky News on WhatsApp<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"sdc-article-strapline__text\">Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News<\/p>\n<p>                <a href=\"https:\/\/whatsapp.com\/channel\/0029Va868Fv8vd1UsF99tP1u\" class=\"sdc-article-strapline__button\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tap here<\/a>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Labour MP Jessica Asato, newly elected in July, wrote to Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall last week <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/news.sky.com\/story\/new-labour-mp-writes-to-government-suggesting-changes-to-winter-fuel-payment-cut-13206117\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">calling for changes to the policy<\/a><\/strong>, specifically to increase the number of people who can claim it.<\/p>\n<p>The Conservatives and Lib Dems have hit out at the plan, with Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey calling it the government&#8217;s &#8220;first big mistake&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>Both parties had called for a vote on axing the payments but the government has refused to hold one.<\/p>\n<div class=\"sdc-article-widget sdc-article-custom-markup \" data-component-name=\"sdc-article-custom-markup\" data-consent=\"pending\" data-vendor-name=\"spreaker\">\n<section aria-label=\"Consent required\" class=\"ui-consent-roadblock\" data-component-name=\"ui-consent-roadblock\" data-aspect-ratio=\"16\/9\">\n<div class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body\">\n        <span class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__title\">Spreaker<\/span><br \/>\n            <span class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__description\" data-show-on-fallback=\"false\"><br \/>\n                This content is provided by <span class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__vendor-title\">Spreaker<\/span>, which may be using cookies and other technologies.<br \/>\n                To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.<br \/>\n                You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable <span class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__vendor-title\">Spreaker<\/span> cookies or to allow those cookies just once.<br \/>\n                You can change your settings at any time via the <a href=\"#privacy-options\">Privacy Options<\/a>.<br \/>\n            <\/span><br \/>\n            <span class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__description\" data-show-on-fallback=\"true\"><br \/>\n                Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to <span class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__vendor-title\">Spreaker<\/span> cookies.<br \/>\n                To view this content you can use the button below to allow <span class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__vendor-title\">Spreaker<\/span> cookies for this session only.<br \/>\n            <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__link-group\">\n                <a href=\"#\" class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__link ui-consent-roadblock-permanently\" data-single-click-vendor-name=\"spreaker\" data-show-on-fallback=\"false\">Enable Cookies<\/a><br \/>\n                <a href=\"#\" class=\"ui-consent-roadblock-body__link ui-consent-roadblock-once\" data-single-click-vendor-name=\"spreaker\">Allow Cookies Once<\/a>\n            <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong><em>\ud83d\udc49 <a href=\"https:\/\/podfollow.com\/politics-at-jack-and-sams\">Tap here to follow Politics at Jack and Sam&#8217;s wherever you get your podcasts<\/a><\/em><em> \ud83d\udc48<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The UK&#8217;s leading charity for older people, Age UK, has written to Ms Reeves with a detailed plan suggesting the allowance should be paid to two million more pensioners who are on other benefits, including housing benefits, council tax support, attendance allowance and carers&#8217; allowance.<\/p>\n<p>On Sunday, Commons leader Lucy Powell told Sky News&#8217; Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips the move was necessary as the economy could have crashed if the government had not found the savings.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/news.sky.com\/story\/sir-keir-starmer-cutting-winter-fuel-payments-will-stabilise-the-economy-13208429\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sir Keir Starmer has defended cutting the winter fuel allowance for 10 million pensioners as he faces pressure to rethink the move. The government announced last month the universal payment to pensioners, worth between \u00a3100 and \u00a3300 a year, would be restricted to just those who receive pension credit. Sir Keir and Chancellor Rachel Reeves [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":126121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/e3.365dm.com\/24\/08\/768x432\/skynews-keir-starmer-press_6667934.jpg?20240827102700","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[603],"tags":[6467,1933,2363,3959,672,1170,96631,3960,2802],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126120"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=126120"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126120\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":126122,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126120\/revisions\/126122"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/126121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=126120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=126120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=126120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}