Labour members at the party’s conference have voted in favour of a motion calling for ministers to reverse their cut to the winter fuel allowance, in an embarrassing blow to Sir Keir Starmer.
While there is nothing binding about the vote, it puts further pressure on the Labour leadership over its controversial decision to take away the benefit from millions of pensioners.
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The motion was put forward by the trade union Unite, which has accused the government of embarking on “austerity mark two”.
Sharon Graham, the general secretary of Unite and outspoken critic of Sir Keir, moved the proposal by quoting Labour’s election winning post-war manifesto, which she said was “one of hope”.
She said: “The nation wants food, work and homes… It wants a high and rising standard of living, security for all, against a rainy day…”
“Friends, that’s a quote from the 1945 Labour Manifesto, written in the shadow of death, destruction and debt, caused by years of war. A manifesto of hope.”
Ms Graham said debt then was “nearly three times higher than it is now” but there was “no mention of cuts, no mention of austerity and certainly no mention of making everyday people pay”.
She added: “I do not understand how our new Labour government can cut the winter fuel allowance for pensioners and leave the super-rich untouched.
“This is not what people voted for. It is the wrong decision and needs to be reversed.”
The motion passed by a show of hands on what is the last day of the Labour Party conference in Liverpool.
The annual event is the first one in 15 years with Labour now in government, but has been somewhat overshadowed by a row over donations and freebies, as well as the controversy over the benefit cut.
The change means only elderly people in receipt of pension credit will receive help with their fuel bills over winter, whereas previously it was universal.
Labour has justified its decision by saying it needs to stabilise the economy after the Tories left behind a £22bn financial “blackhole”.
Labour have ‘done more to protect pensioners than 14 years of Tories’
Ahead of the vote, pensions secretary Liz Kendall defended the cut, claiming “this Labour government has done more to help the poorest pensioners in the last two months than the Tories did in 14 years”.
Sir Keir Starmer. Pic: Reuters
She said that included “the biggest ever drive to increase Pension Credit uptake, backed by our commitment to the pensions triple lock”.
She added: “This will increase the state pension by an estimated £1,700 this parliament with an extra £6bn of funding forecast next year. With an extra £6bn of funding forecast next year.
“This is the difference a Labour government makes.”
No U-turn on policy
Ministers have made clear the policy won’t be changed, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves telling a fringe event on Tuesday that parliament has already voted on restricting winter fuel payments and “there was overwhelming support” for it.
The vote passed in the House of Commons earlier this month after a Tory motion to block the cut failed.
Only one Labour MP, Jon Trickett, voted against the government on what he said would be a matter of “life and death” for his constituents, though over 50 Labour MPs abstained.
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Opposition MPs have used the Unite motion to ramp up attacks on Sir Keir over the policy.
SNP Westminster Leader Stephen Flynn said the prime minister “must finally listen to voters, admit he got it wrong, and U-turn on the Labour government’s damaging cuts to the Winter Fuel Payment for millions of pensioners”.
But a Labour spokesperson made clear that won’t happen, saying: “The Tories wrecked our economy and left a £22bn black hole in the public finances. They made commitments they couldn’t pay for, covered it up and ran away.
“The Labour Party was elected on our manifesto commitment to sound fiscal rules, economic growth is our primary mission and we will take the tough decisions now to rebuild Britain and make every part of the country better off.”
