Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps her Department is taking to support pensioners with the cost of living in Sutton Coldfield.

We’re committed to helping pensioners with the cost of living and ensuring financial security in retirement. The State Pension is the foundation of income in retirement and will remain so. At Autumn Budget 2025 we announced that, in line with the government’s commitment to the Triple Lock throughout this parliament, over 12 million pensioners will benefit from a 4.8% increase to their basic or new State Pension in April 2026, increasing their income by up to £575 a year. This follows a substantial increase in 2025/26, with those receiving a full new State Pension getting a £360 boost.

The Pension Credit Standard Minimum Guarantee will increase by 4.8% in April 2026, from £227.10 to £238 a week for a single pensioner and from £346.60 to £363.25 a week for a couple, protecting the income of the poorest pensioners. Those in receipt of Pension Credit will also automatically receive the Cold Weather Payment alongside other benefits.

The Winter Fuel Payment will benefit over three quarters of pensioners for the duration of this parliament, targeting help to those on lower and middle incomes while ensuring fairness for pensioners and taxpayers.

To help with ongoing cost of living pressures, the government will remove around £150 on average off household energy bills across Great Britain from April 2026. By ending the Energy Company Obligation, we are taking some of the expensive legacy levies off bills.

We are expanding the Warm Home Discount to around an additional 2.7 million households. This means that from this winter, around 6 million low-income households will receive the £150 support to help with their energy bill costs. The Warm Home Discount regulations expire in 2026, and we will want to consider all options for future bill support beyond this point.

We are also providing support for low-income households through our Warm Homes Plan which will support investment in insulation and low carbon heating – upgrading millions of homes over this Parliament. At the recent Budget, we announced £1.5 billion in new funding to support households facing fuel poverty.