Oral Answers to Questions

Alex Cunningham Excerpts

Tuesday 1st February 2022 Commons Chamber

The Chancellor of the Exchequer was asked—

[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

1. What fiscal steps he plans to take to help reduce the impact on households of the rise in the cost of living.

[Ian Byrne (Liverpool, West Derby) (Lab)]

5. What recent assessment he has made of the impact of inflation on trends in the levels of living standards.

--- Later in debate ---

[Alex Cunningham]

The Chancellor will have plenty of opportunities to get the answer right this morning. Data from the Office for National Statistics show that on average people aged 65 or over spend twice as much on energy compared with those under 30, so they will be hit twice as hard by escalating bills. Meanwhile, Energy UK tells us that without Government action there will soon be 6 million people, many of them pensioners, living in fuel poverty. Will the Chancellor persuade himself to really get into this and take up our pledge to remove VAT from energy bills and extend the warm homes discount? If he will not, what will he do, particularly for our most vulnerable pensioners who are suffering from this cost of living crisis?

[Rishi Sunak]

I am proud of this Government’s track record in supporting pensioners. Thanks to the triple lock, in place since 2010, pensions are, relative to earnings, the highest they have been in more than three decades. However, I recognise the anxiety that many pensioners will feel about rising energy bills, and we are always looking at the best way to support people. To help with exactly that phenomenon, the winter fuel payment provides up to £300 for everyone over the state pension age.