STORY
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party has pledged to fully reinstate winter fuel payments for pensioners and to scrap the two-child benefit cap if it enters government, in a direct challenge to Labour’s current proposals. Announced ahead of a press conference next week, these commitments aim to seize the political initiative on two of the most sensitive welfare issues facing the next Government.
Reform UK says the restoration of winter fuel payments would reverse cuts made last year, when eligibility was restricted to those receiving pension credit, leaving more than 10 million pensioners out of pocket on sums worth up to £300. Under the proposed policy, households with a pensioner under 80 would again receive a £200 lump sum, and those with a pensioner over 80 would receive £300 annually. Meanwhile, the party has vowed to abolish the two-child cap on means-tested benefits, a measure introduced by the Conservative government in April 2017 that currently affects around 1.5 million families by denying support for any third or subsequent child. Reform UK plans to fund both pledges by cutting net-zero environmental projects and cutting the foreign aid budget further.