Sir Keir Starmer has refused to apologise for his government’s treatment of pensioners following his humiliating U-turn on Winter Fuel Allowance yesterday, doubling down by insisting it was necessary to “stabilise the economy” and support pensioners in the long term. The Prime Minister was grilled after announcing that more pensioners will now be eligible for the winter fuel payment, months after his policy took the lifeline away from millions of older people.
Pressed by GB News to apologise for the policy reversal, Sir Keir said: “The decision we made on Winter Fuel in the budget was the right decision. We had to stabilise the economy… I’m really pleased to be able to do that.” The Labour leader has faced criticism over the timing of the U-turn, with opponents and commentators suggesting it was prompted by poor local election results and mounting pressure from the public. In a separate tense exchange with Sky News, Beth Rigby challenged the Prime Minister: “You realised it was really unpopular, and you listened to voters. That is the truth isn’t it?”
Keir’s U-turn has left many feeling as though the Prime Minister is undependable (Image: Getty)
Starmer replied: “Of course we listen to voters all of the time. That’s part and parcel of being a politician… The first question is, did we make the right decision in the first place? I believe we did.”
Despite maintaining that the Budget decision was necessary due to a “£22 billion black hole,” Starmer said the government had now moved to expand eligibility for this winter’s payment thanks to a stronger-than-expected economic performance.
“What you’re leaving out of that list is the actual quarterly results on growth for quarter one this year, which were much higher than anyone predicted,” he told Sky News. “We’ve now said where the threshold is, and that is a good thing.”
But criticism of the government’s handling of the matter continues to mount. Helen Whately, Shadow Pensions Secretary, said: “Today we witnessed a new low for our increasingly desperate and embattled Prime Minister.”
Will Starmer be able to regain the trust of the country? (Image: Getty)
The PM’s defiance came after both Rachel Reeves and Ed Miliband also refused to apologise, with the energy secretary insisting that the Chancellor’s initial policy to means test Winter Fuel was correct but the eligibility thresholds required tweaking.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch issued a damning statement yesterday, demanding to know: “What took them so long?”
Starmer dismissed claims that the reversal was politically motivated, saying: “We didn’t do it in the spring statement, notwithstanding most people saying you’re going to. Equally, I don’t think the first lever that a government should go to is the tax lever.”
The government’s decision to re-expand winter fuel eligibility will come as a relief to many pensioners facing a challenging winter, but the political storm over the reversal appears far from over.
With pressure mounting from both opposition MPs and sceptical media, the Prime Minister’s refusal to admit fault may only deepen scrutiny as the autumn fiscal statement looms.
