Following the controversial decision to scrap the winter fuel allowance, the government has announced plans to extend the Household Support Fund until March. The move is aimed at helping vulnerable households cope with the cost of living crisis across the winter. The fund will be distributed to local councils who will have the power to release small payments to those in need.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said the fund would be launched in the coming weeks and that people should contact their local council to see what support is available to them.

The decision to scrap winter fuel payments is estimated to save the Treasury £1.4 billion this financial year. But it also left almost 10 million pensioners struggling to make it through the winter, a move Age Concern has called reckless and dangerous. Originally set up in 2021 to help those hit by the Covid epidemic and intended to end in September, the Household Support Fund will account for an extra £421 million for those in need. Councils are free to determine who is eligible for help and the fund will also support devolved administrations in England and Wales.

However, it is already facing criticism for being too little to relieve the pressure facing households in the coming months.

Sir Keir Starmer has warned of more painful times to come with Chancellor Rachel Reeves's budget in October, to compensate for the dire financial ‘black hole’ Labour has inherited from the Conservatives. But the Conservatives have hit back claiming that Labour has inherited a recovering economy and their stories are simply excuses to justify tax cuts. Either way, it is unlikely this move is going to be sufficient to compensate for all the pensioners hit by the end of the winter fuel payments. Pensioners are urged to speak to their local councils about pension benefits in order to make sure they are receiving all they are entitled to, to get them through the winter.

(Sources: bbc.co.uk)