Demand of reversal of change to Winter Fuel Allowance as Trade Unions unite in this campaign

The Northern Ireland Committee (NIC) of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) voted unanimously for a unified campaign to lobby elected representatives both in Stormont and Westminster to lobby the Labour Government to “change their minds” and reverse the introduction of means testing for the Winter Fuel Allowance at a conference held at Derry’s Guildhall.

Welcoming the unanimous support from trade union delegates for the Winter Fuel Payment motion at the NIC-ICTU Conference was Freeze the Cuts, who joined the trade union delegates to demand the cut is fully mitigated.

The conference motion unanimously passed read: “Conference condemns the recent decision by the UK government to end the universal entitlement to winter fuel payments, a decision that was enforced in Northern Ireland by the Stormont Executive parties. 

“The policy will limit the special fuel payment to the 10% of pensioners who are eligible for the receipt of pension credit and exclude pensioners with any significant level of employment-based private or public pension. 

“This measure therefore disproportionately impacts retired workers who were employed in low-wage positions—many of whom already experience severe hardship. 

“Conference notes that the incomes of pensioners are fixed and they have no mechanism to make up this loss. 

"Furthermore, due to the region’s climate and our low-income status, this regressive policy will disproportionately impact Northern Ireland, which has the highest fuel poverty rate (24%) in the UK. 

“More pensioners in Northern Ireland will struggle to either ‘heat or eat’ themselves this winter than any other part of the UK. Across the UK, this policy has been opposed by trade unions and allies supporting older people, such as the National Pensioners’ Convention. 

“They point out that 10 million UK pensioners will lose up to £300 a year. This is equivalent to losing more than a week’s pension income, and the cuts come just as Ofgem has announced the energy price cap will increase by £149 this winter. 

“Pensioners shouldn’t be made to pay the price for government mistakes. There is plenty of wealth in our society which the government could tax. The energy companies more than trebled their profits during the pandemic, and the 50 richest families in Britain own a combined £500 billion in wealth—the same as half the UK population. A wealth tax on the richest 1% would raise billions, yet this Labour Government has chosen to target pensioners, the most vulnerable in society, instead. 

“Conference calls for a unified campaign to lobby our elected representatives both in Stormont and Westminster to lobby this Labour Govt to “change their minds” and reverse the introduction of means-testing for the Winter Fuel Allowance."

Susan Fitzgerald, the regional secretary for Unite the Union, said: “Today the fact that all affiliate unions in the Irish Congress of Trade Unions resoundingly passed the motion condemning the attack on the tired workers and pensioners, calling for the restoration of the full payment of the winter fuel support for older workers.

“I think that is a powerful step forward, but this campaign has been running for a period of time now, and I think we have scored a milestone win with the announcement from the executive that they have found £17 million to offset the impact of this, but that would not have happened had it not been for the campaign from Freeze the Cuts and the Trade Unions, Unite, and others involved in this to date.

“However, it is not £17 million we need; it is £44 million.

“Our campaign is only getting into its stride. This is a horrendous attack on older workers in a place that routinely records excess winter deaths of elderly people. We just cannot tolerate this, but this campaign is going to grow and escalate; there are judicial reviews being planned for, a billboard campaign right across Northern Ireland, and most importantly, people turning out and mobilising in the street.

“Those people who are not affected understand that what is happening to older people today will happen to the rest of us tomorrow.”

While Ross Lopes-Lister, an organiser with Unite for a Workers Economy, was pleased with the decision taken at the conference. 

He said: “This was important today.

“The motion passed and shows that this is supported not only by all the trade unions but also the delegates of those unions.

“There has been the recent announcement, although not publicly, of £17 million being put aside; while that is welcomed, it is not a cut of the £44.3 million that was quoted by Gordon Lyons.

“Unite for a Workers Economy and the retired members of Unite the Union have actually pinned down a meeting with minister Gordon Lyons on the 28th of November, at which we will be asking questions not only about the £17 million but also what measures can be put in place, ideally a stall if not a complete reversal of this draconian cut.”