Age Concern is urging Alistair Darling to put pensioners living in fuel poverty at the top of his Budget priorities. The number of older people in fuel poverty is likely to have more than doubled in the last 4 years alone.¹ New estimates from the charity put the number of pensioner households living in fuel poverty now at 2.25 million, with an estimated 250,000 pensioner households pushed into fuel poverty by the price rises this year.²

Older people are the group most at risk of fuel poverty and account for around 50% of households affected.³ Pensioners have faced a cocktail of increases to the cost of living this year with hikes in energy, food, water and Council Tax bills. Age Concern is worried that these increasing financial pressures may cause many older people to potentially put their health at risk, by limiting their heating and food shopping to cut back on costs.

At the same time that pensioners are facing huge hikes in their cost of living the real value of the state pension and Winter Fuel Payment are decreasing. The government has failed to increase the £200 Winter Fuel Payment since it was first paid eight years ago, despite huge increases in fuel costs. The government has committed to re-establishing the link between the state pension and earnings by the end of the next Parliament. However unless the date to re-introduce the link is brought forward, the state pension will only be worth £81 in relation to today’s earnings by 2012.

Gordon Lishman, Director General of Age Concern, said:

“It is a disgrace that there are now likely to be well over two million older households living in fuel poverty. The recent huge hikes in energy prices have been a very hard blow to many of the poorest pensioners and have pushed thousands more into fuel poverty.

“Urgent action needs to be taken to address this problem. The Winter Fuel Payment must go up by at least £100. We also need to see more money for energy efficiency schemes, and energy companies being made to offer meaningful social tariffs.

“The introduction of the state pension in the Budget 100 years ago was a major financial breakthrough for older people. The challenge for this Chancellor’s Budget is to tackle pensioner fuel poverty as one of the biggest financial issues currently facing today’s pensioners.”

Higher energy charges for customers with pre-payment meters penalise the poorest and government action on this issue would be extremely welcome. However fuel poverty is a huge issue for pensioners, which needs to be tackled in several ways to provide an effective solution to lift the millions affected out of fuel poverty. Age Concern is issuing a five-point challenge to the government on the action they need to take to address this problem.

www.ageconcern.org.uk 11th March 2008