MPS for Runcorn and Widnes have voted in the House of Commons on a motion regarding winter fuel allowance.

It follows the Labour Government’s announcement that it is scrapping winter fuel payments for millions of pensioners.

From this autumn, pensioners not on pension credit or other means-tested benefits will no longer get annual winter fuel payments, worth between £100 and £300.

A Conservative motion was brought before Parliament to annul the Government’s cuts to winter fuel payments.

However, this was defeated by 348 votes to 228 yesterday, Tuesday, with a majority 120.

Runcorn MP Mike Amesbury and Widnes MP Derek Twigg both voted in line with the Labour party in opposition to the Conservative motion to annul the winter fuel cut.

Mr Amesbury spoke during the debate, asking Liz Kendall, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what mitigating measures will be put in place to help pensioners.

He said the actions by the Government were needed to combat ‘actions of Conservative members when they were in government for 14 years’.

“There are people who have legitimate concerns about the low level of the threshold—hard-working people who have tiny pension pots,” he said.

In response, Ms Kendall said: “We have done more to increase pension credit uptake in the last two months than Conservative members did in 14 years.

“We have written to all local authorities to ask them to identify eligible pensioners, including by sharing data.

We are joining forces with Age UK and Citizens Advice to ensure pensioners check and apply.

“We launched a major awareness campaign, to continue right up to the deadline to apply on 21 December—and yes, pension credit will be backdated by three months—backed by 450 extra staff to ensure claims are processed as quickly as possible.

The Deputy Prime Minister (Angela Rayner) is working with housing associations and supported accommodation providers so that their residents know what they are entitled to.

“I am working with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Wes Streeting) to ensure that frontline NHS staff can signpost older patients who may be housebound because of disabilities and chronic conditions.

“For the very first time, we are writing to all pensioners on housing benefit who are potentially eligible to encourage them to claim, something the Conservatives never did.

“In the longer term, because the only way to guarantee uptake is to make the whole process more automated, we will bring forward the merger of housing benefit and pension credit, which Conservative members never did.

“That is the extra help for the poorest that we are determined to deliver, but it is built on a bedrock of support for all pensioners through our commitment to the pension triple lock, which has seen the new state pension increase by £900 this year and £970 the year before.

“Our continued commitment to the triple lock means that the new state pension is forecast to increase by a further £1,700 over the course of this Parliament, including, if today’s Office for National Statistics figures are confirmed next month, an extra £460 from next April.”