North East Lincolnshire’s Liberal Democrat group has called on the government to apologise to pensioners following a u-turn on Winter Fuel Payments.
In 2024, changes to the policy meant the payments – ranging from £100 to £300 – were restricted to those on pension credit or other means-tested benefits. The move sparked widespread concern about rising fuel costs, leaving many older people worried about how they would manage through the winter.
More than 10 million pensioners across the UK lost access to the support, including 26,119 in North East Lincolnshire – over 85% of those who previously qualified.
The government has now confirmed it will reinstate the payments for around nine million pensioner households in England and Wales, excluding only the wealthiest two million.
The Liberal Democrats have welcomed the move but said the Government must go further, demanding an apology and stressing that the u-turn must serve as a wake-up call regarding how vulnerable pensioners are protected in future.
“We welcome the Government’s U-turn, but for thousands of pensioners here in North East Lincolnshire, it’s come far too late,” said Councillor Nicola Aisthorpe, Leader of the local Liberal Democrat Group.
“Over 26,000 local residents missed out on vital winter fuel support last year. Many were left struggling to heat their homes during the worst of the cost-of-living crisis. That should never have happened and it must never happen again.”
Discussing efforts to fight the initial policy change in 2024, Councillor Aisthorpe continued: “Local Lib Dem councillors acted early. We brought a motion to the council calling on the Government to take urgent steps to make the system fairer and ensure vulnerable pensioners weren’t left behind. That motion passed, and a letter, signed by all group leaders was sent to Ministers urging a rethink and a change to the threshold.
“Now that the Government has admitted it got this wrong, they owe our residents more than a policy change. They owe them a proper apology.”
Part of the Gi Grimsby News team since 2020.