Labour faces winter fuel payment clash as unions push for conference U-turn

Unite, one of Labour’s biggest union backers, and the CWU are seeking to force a vote at the conference in Liverpool to save the winter fuel allowance for millions of pensioners

Labour faces a conference clash over plans to axe the winter fuel payment as unions push to reverse the cut.

Unite, one of Labour’s biggest union backers, and the CWU are seeking to force a vote today to save the winter fuel allowance for millions of pensioners. Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in the summer that she would strip the annual payment from more than 10 million pensioners as part of efforts to fix the mess the Tories made of the economy.

It means only those who get pension credit or other means-tested benefits will get the allowance this winter, which is worth up to £300. Delegates at Labour's conference in Liverpool will debate the issue today, with talks on the wording of a motion to scrap the plan running into yesterday evening.

Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham told the Mirror: "I'd like to see them reverse the decision they've made. They have made an absolute misstep here and the amount of money they are saving from this really quite cruel policy is really small beer - £1.2billion - in comparison to the hole."

She went on: "People genuinely cannot understand how a Labour Government has opted for stopping the winter fuel allowance but have left the rich totally untouched."

Unite's motion calls for a wealth tax on the richest 1% of Brits, which the Government is resisting. The motion said: "Britain cannot wait for growth, nor turn back to failed austerity. We need a vision where pensioners are not the first to face a new wave of cuts and those that profited from decades of deregulation finally help to rebuild Britain."

The vote would be non-binding on the Government but a loss risks embarrassing ministers - and revealing the scale of opposition to the plan.

Matt Wrack, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU), warned it would make the new Government look "out of touch" and would come back to haunt them. He told a fringe event: "Ordinary voters are baffled by the decision. Within the first few weeks of the Government, there are some worrying trends.

"The treatment of the question of poverty has been appalling. The approach to the two-child benefit limit and the winter fuel allowance has been politically inept."

But Ms Reeves is resisting calls to change course, as she argues fixing the economy means tough choices. And Keir Starmer also stood firm at the weekend, telling the Mirror: "I think the principle of having an untargeted winter fuel payment for everybody, even those who don’t need it is something nobody really thinks is sensible.” Mr Starmer said stabilising the economy would mean pensioners aren’t hit hard by inflation.

Billboards have been unveiled by Unite around Liverpool with the slogan "Defend the winter fuel payment" and show a pensioner huddled over a heater. The union also plans to stage a demonstration outside the conference centre today.