Pensioners: Cost of Living

(asked on 10th February 2022) - View Source

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to protect pensioners at risk of financial hardship as a result of increases in the cost of energy.


Answered by
Helen Whately Portrait
Helen Whately
Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
This question was answered on 21st February 2022

The Government is committed to ensuring that older people are able to live with the dignity and respect they deserve, and the State Pension is the foundation of state support for older people.

Over the last two years, the basic and new State Pension have increased by more than 5.6%. This means that from April, the full yearly amount of the basic State Pension will be around £720 more in 2022/23 than if it had been up-rated by prices since 2010. That’s a rise of over £2,300 in cash terms.

The overall trend in the percentage of pensioners living in poverty is a dramatic fall over recent decades. There are 200,000 fewer pensioners in absolute poverty, both before and after housing costs, than in 2009/10.

The Government is providing support worth over £20 billion across this financial year and next that will help households, including pensioners, with the cost of living. This includes the £9.1 billion package announced this February to help with rising energy bills.

Our generous package includes a non-repayable £150 council tax rebate from April and a further reduction of £200 on energy bills in October. The £200 reduction in households’ energy bills from October will help people manage the increase in energy bills by spreading the increased costs over a few years, so they are more manageable for households.

This is on top of existing support available through Pension Credit, Winter Fuel Payments for households with people over State Pension age, the Warm Home Discount Scheme, and Cold Weather Payments.

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