Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) male and (b) female pensioners in Edinburgh South West will receive the 2025 increase in the state pension.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
All State Pension recipients in Edinburgh South West will receive an increase in their State Pension from April 2025. At the quarter ending May 2024, the latest published State Pension caseload data, there were (a) 7,040 Male and (b) 8,501 Female State Pension recipients in Edinburgh South West. Source: DWP Stat-Xplore.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the cost of increasing the State Pension for people in Edinburgh South West constituency in 2025.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
No such estimate has been made for Edinburgh South West. In April 2025, the basic and new State Pension will increase by 4.1% as confirmed in the Social Security Benefits Up-rating Order 2025. In 25/26, it is estimated the total State Pension expenditure, covering Great Britain and including State Pension paid outside UK, will increase by around £9bn. This estimation is available in the latest Benefit Expenditure and Caseload tables published at Autumn Statement 2024. Geographical breakdowns are not available.
Source: Benefit expenditure and caseload tables 2024 - GOV.UK
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households in Edinburgh South West constituency claimed the Winter Fuel Payment in (a) 2023-24 and (b) 2024-25; and how many of those were new claimants in each of those years.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The vast majority of Winter Fuel Payments are made automatically without the need to claim. Linking Winter Fuel eligibility to Pension Credit and other means tested benefits for pensioners ensures the least well-off pensioners still receive the help they need.
In winter 2023-24, there were around 11,500 pensioner households in the Edinburgh South West constituency receiving the Winter Fuel Payment. This is based on Winter Fuel Payment statistics for winter 2023 to 2024.
We do not yet hold data on the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients through winter 2024-25. These figures will be released as part of the Winter Fuel Payment statistics for Winter 2024 to 2025.
Powers to pay winter heating assistance in Scotland have been devolved to the Scottish Parliament. The Scottish Government have replaced Winter Fuel Payment with Pension Age Winter Heating Payment from 2024/25. It is up to the Scottish Government how it operates these payments.
Information on new recipients of Winter Fuel Payments in 2023-24 is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.