DWP responds to calls to reverse Winter Fuel Payment changes

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has issued a response to calls for changes to the Winter Fuel Payment to be reversed.

The DWP has rejected an online petition demanding the reinstatement of Winter Fuel Payments to all pensioners. An estimated 10 million pensioners will not get the Winter Fuel Payment this year after chancellor Rachel Reeves declared a change in the eligibility criteria, meaning only people on certain benefits will receive it.

Previously, everyone over the state pension age was entitled to Winter Fuel Payments, but now, the payment will only be made to people receiving certain means-tested benefits, such as Pension Credit. READ MORE: The five-digit code that shows if you have had DWP Christmas bonus Labour said it made the decision to means-test the payment due to a £22billion deficit left by the Tories.

However, charities have warned that the changes could plunge millions of elderly people into poverty this winter. An online petition urging Labour to reverse its decision has garnered over 49,500 signatures, reports the Mirror.