Keir Starmer: I want to make more pensioners eligible for winter fuel payments
Sir Keir said the Government would act after first needing to ‘stabilise the economy with tough decisions’.
Helen Corbett
Wednesday 21 May 2025 12:20 BST
Sir Keir Starmer has said the Government wants to make more pensioners eligible for winter fuel payments.
He has faced pressure from Labour ranks to change course over the squeeze on benefits and pensioners’ winter fuel payments.
Sir Keir said the Government has needed to “stabilise the economy with tough decisions” after taking over from the Tories, and that the economy is starting to improve.
“We want to make sure people feel those improvements in their days as their lives go forward,” he said.
“That is why we want to ensure that as we go forward, more pensioners are eligible for winter fuel payments.”
He said the Government will “only make decisions we can afford” and will therefore look at this as part of a fiscal event.