Health Secretary Wes Streeting clashes with Sky News presenter Kay Burley on winter fuel payments.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting in Sky News clash (Image: Sky News)
Wes Streeting insists pensioners will still be “better off” under Labour in fiery clash with Sky News presenter Kay Burley.
The Health Secretary was quizzed on the benefit cut, with Ms Burley saying Britain’s elderly would not have lost the payment under the Conservatives.
Sir Keir Starmer made the same committment during his Labour conference speech yesterday.
Up to 10 million people will lose the winter fuel payment this winter after Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ decision to axe the up to £300 lifeline.
Winter Fuel Payments: Labour members protest policy
When it was put to him that pensioners would have been “better off” under the Tories because they would have kept the triple lock and winter fuel payments, Mr Streeting said: “I don’t accept that Kay because the Conservatives left a £22bn blackhole in the public finances. They weren’t straight with the British people ahead of the general election. They were spending like there was no tomorrow because I think they were assuming that for the Conservative Government, there was no tomorrow.
” So they were spending recklessly hoping that would carry them through the general election and now this Labour government is picking up the pieces. That does mean difficult choices on winter fuel allowance. There will be other difficult choices to come too.
“But because the Chancellor has portected the triple lock, even after the deciisons he’s taken on the winter fuel allowance, pensioners will still be better off this winter thsn they were last winter and they’ll be better off next year still because we are determined to protect pensioners’ incomes and align them with living standards and that’s the right thing to do.”
Kay Burley grills Wes Streeting on Winter Fuel Payment cuts
When it was again put to him that pensioner would be better off under the Tories, Mr Streeting said the Conservative manifesto was “fundamentally dishonest”.
Ms Burley then put it to him that he appeared to want the nation to applaud Labour for keeping the triple lock policy – brought in by the Tories – as their way to protect pensioners.
Mr Streteing said: “We don’t expect lots of applause as we take difficult choices.”
