Residents of Westminster face winter fuel payment wipeout, says LibDem Merlene Emerson

9.11.00pm GMT Thu 17th Jan 2008

We should make sure that older people can keep warm during the winter

Liberal Democrats in Westminster are calling on the Government to protect local pensioners from energy price rises. They have made the call after figures, from the independent House of Commons Library, showed that recent increases in the cost of electricity and gas are set to wipe out pensioners' winter fuel payment.

Figures obtained by the Liberal Democrats show that since 2004/2005, and taking into account recently announced price rises:

• for a typical pensioner household aged 65-74 with gas central heating, annual gas bills are up by £260 and electricity by £160 each year - a total of £420

• for a typical pensioner household aged over 75 gas bills are up £200 per annum and each year's electricity bills up £150 - a total of £350

• the value of the Winter Fuel Payment per household for those aged 60-79 is £200, and £300 for those aged over 80

• the £300 rate for the over 80s was introduced in the winter of 2003/2004 and hasn't risen since then

"Elderly and disabled people are hardest hit by the fuel price hikes, which more than wipe out the value of the Winter Fuel Payment," said Merlene Emerson, the prospective Liberal Democrat candidate for the London Assembly's West Central constituency.

"There are, according to the last census, in 2001, approximately 16,000 pensioners in the Cities of London and Westminster parliamentary constituency and approximately another 16,000 in Regent's Park and Kensington North constituency. The recent fuel cost rises threaten to put many of them in a financially difficult position.

"The Government must do far more to combat fuel poverty. The top priority must be to end the scandal where pensioners are paying a fortune to heat draughty houses where a lot of the heat is simply wasted. Many older people are currently paying to heat the great outdoors in addition to their own home.

"This is a waste of scarce cash and also makes no sense for the environment.

"In many other European countries with much colder weather, household energy bills are lower because homes are better insulated and heating is more energy-efficient.

"The Government needs to get its act together and make sure that our pensioners don't have to make a choice between heating and eating on these cold winter days."