Latest news with #WinterFuelAllowances
Daily Mirror
17-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Pensioners with just 'modest savings' to be denied £300 Winter Fuel Payment
A alert has been issued for nine million state pensioners who could still lose £300 Winter Fuel Payments from the Department for Work and Pensions - experts have explained all Thousands of state pensioners may be at risk of losing their £300 Winter Fuel Payments from the Department for Work and Pensions due to having "modest" savings, a building society has warned. Following a government U-turn, the Winter Fuel Allowances have been reinstated for nine million pensioners, However, those unknowingly exceeding the new £35,000 threshold may still miss out. Coventry Building Society is warning that interest earned on standard savings accounts counts towards the threshold, which could push people already close to the limit over the edge. Jeremy Cox, head of strategy at Coventry Building Society, warned that "thousands could still unknowingly be left out in the cold - not because they're earning more, but because their savings are". He explained that "many pensioners may not realise that interest earned on savings held outside of ISAs count towards their total taxable income". He added: "With interest rates still relatively high, even modest savings can generate income that pushes someone over the threshold." He noted: "ISAs offer a tax-free way to keep savings interest out of the income equation. Interest earned within an ISA is never taxed and does not count toward income calculations". Financial planners have informed The Telegraph that those marginally above the £35,000 limit could benefit from slight alterations in behaviour, potentially providing them with an extra bit of cash this winter, reports Birmingham Live. Alice Haine from Bestinvest referred to the new threshold as "is effectively another tax cliff-edge". She stressed: "Paying attention to what constitutes as income may become very important for those whose incomes hover around the £35,000 mark, as a minor adjustment could be the difference between receiving the payment or handing it back through tax." Sir Steve Webb, the former pensions minister now with pension consultants LCP, made it clear: "The Government's own figures clearly suggest that they expect the number of losers from the new policy to rise each year." He warned: "With around two million pensioners currently over the £35,000 threshold, this number could easily rise by another half a million by 2030." Sir Steve raised concerns about a potential covert fiscal tactic, concluding with: "This could end up being another way in which governments use inflation to quietly raise additional revenue year-by-year."
ITV News
29-04-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
Split vote: Why councils in the Midlands could be divided in the local elections
Local elections don't set pulses racing - but they set the dynamic for the politics to come. The Midlands shires are traditional tory heartlands. But Kemi Badenoch in Westminster was one of the first to admit that her party is destined to be counting losses on Friday - not gains. Currently the tories are in charge of all eleven midlands counties and unitaries being contested on Thursday - how many might they comfortably control when the votes are in? But as the Badenoch team prepares for questions about her authority - imagine the pressures on Sir Keir Starmer's Labour team. When I was checking out opinion recently at the Newark Pensioners Luncheon Club there was still widespread disgust about the Labour's cut to Winter Fuel Allowances and the 'freebies' declared by winning cabinet members. Rightly or wrongly these national concerns may take precedence over decisions about who is best to run planning transport and social care. For the first time in many years - voting intentions will be split in many directions. Disaffected Conservatives may switch to Nigel Farage's Reform UK - as will disaffected Labour voters. The Liberal Democrats are starting from a low base -but they are well aware that the Green Party could scoop up gains at their expense. And there is a big array of Independent candidates to choose from. A grouping forms the main opposition in Nottinghamshire. Reform's poll ratings are impressive - and the fall-out for defeated parties could be huge if the party manage to take control of a council. They have focussed electioneering in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Staffordshire. But of course were they to become winners - as Labour have discovered- it's often harder to stay so popular as the tough reckoning begins with tight budgets and ever increasing demands. Nigel Farage has been out on the election trail and drawing big crowds in the midlands. I remember the last man who did that. His name was Jeremy Corbyn. The biggest issues for voters remain the cost of living and the perennial problem of potholes in the roads. Turnout is never big at local level. But the fall-out could be big - for the party leaders who now realise they are just one of three four, five or six.
