Latest news with #SilverVoices
Daily Mail
10 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Labour's 'winter fuel death tax': Tens of thousands of grieving families could be hounded to pick up their dead elderly relative's HMRC bill
The families of dead pensioners could be hounded by the taxman under Labour's winter fuel payments U-turn, it emerged yesterday. Downing Street indicated a 'winter fuel death tax' could be introduced after announcing that millions of pensioners stripped of the subsidy will get it back from this winter. It is understood that the model currently most favoured for restoring the subsidy is to pay it to all pensioners but claw the money back through higher tax bills from the wealthiest. This is because means-testing the payments is viewed as too complex. However, there are concerns about the time period of at least six months between receiving the subsidy and it being declared or clawed back at the end of the tax year. It is estimated that tens of thousands of elderly people who die within that period could be affected, potentially forcing their grieving relatives to pick up the HMRC bill after submitting their loved-one's posthumous tax return. Dennis Reed, of over-60s campaign group Silver Voices, branded ministers 'heartless' for even considering the model. He said: 'This winter fuel death tax would be absolutely pathetic.' Asked about a report in the Guardian, which first reported that thousands of relatives face being hounded by HMRC, the Prime Minister's official spokesman refused to rule it out. He said: 'We will set out the details on the policy in due course... HMRC have already got a well-established process in place for assessing someone's tax affairs after they've passed away via probate.' He added: 'The work is under way. I'm not going to give a running commentary on that work.'
The Independent
a day ago
- Business
- The Independent
Forcing rich pensioners to pay back winter fuel allowance would be tax ‘nightmare', Reeves warned
Questions have been raised over Rachel Reeves ' winter fuel U-turn after it emerged the government plans to reinstate the payments for all pensioners before attempting to claw it back from millions through higher taxes. The chancellor is expected to set out Labour 's plans to reverse the controversial policy change at Wednesday's spending review, but fresh questions have been raised over how the government will distribute the payments. Reports suggest Ms Reeves will from this autumn restore the grants, worth up to £300, to the 10 million pensioners who had lost out. But only those in the bottom half of average incomes will keep the payments, with the top half of earners forced to repay the grant through higher tax bills over the course of the year. One option for the threshold at which pensioners are eligible is average household disposable income, currently around £37,000, The Times reported. Such a plan would resemble George Osborne's high income child benefit charge, which sees 1 per cent of total child benefit received taxed for every £100 earned over £60,000. It means that, over whatever threshold Ms Reeves sets for the payments, an amount will be clawed back from those on higher incomes. The plans could cost around £700 million, with the chancellor vowing to set out her plans to pay for the change at her autumn Budget. Dennis Reed, of over-60s campaign group Silver Voices, said the plans 'would be an administrative nightmare and would be likely to draw in many more pensioners into the tax system'. He told The Independent: 'The most cost effective solution is to restore the universal benefit and maybe fiddle around with the higher tax threshold in due course to target 'the millionaires'.' Mr Reed accused the government of 'casting around for ways to show it has not made a complete U-turn while gaining the political credit for doing so'. It comes after pensions minister Torsten Bell said there is no prospect of the winter fuel allowance being restored universally. He said: 'The principle I think most people, 95 per cent of people, agree, that it's not a good idea that we have a system paying a few hundreds of pounds to millionaires, and so we're not going to be continuing with that.' Sir Keir Starmer last month announced his intention to give more people access to winter fuel payments, just months after Labour made the previously universal payment means-tested in one of its first acts after taking office. Speaking in Manchester on Wednesday, Ms Reeves said: 'I had to make decisions last year to restore sound public finances, and that involved a number of difficult decisions around welfare, taxation and also public spending, including the decision to means-test winter fuel payments so only the poorest pensioners, those on pension credit, got it. 'But we have now put our public finances on a firmer footing. The economy is in a better shape, but we have also listened to the concerns that people had about the level of the means-test. 'So we will be making changes to that. They will be in place so that pensioners are paid this coming winter, and we'll announce the details of that and the level of that as soon as we possibly can.'
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Fury at minister's winter fuel insult: Campaigners hit out at claims the cut did NOT affect pensioners' health
Labour 's pensions minister faced an angry backlash last night after he claimed that scrapping the winter fuel allowance last year had 'no effect' on the health of older people. In an incendiary intervention as the Government U-turned on the payments, Torsten Bell dismissed warnings from campaigners that removing it from ten million older people had risked a spike in cold-related illnesses and deaths. Mr Bell told MPs that among those who had been hit by the cuts imposed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves last winter, 'we see no differential effects on their health'. But his comments triggered an angry response from campaigners and threatened to overshadow efforts by ministers to undo the political damage caused last year by the decision to means-test the winter fuel payment – one of Ms Reeves's first acts in Government. Dennis Reed, of over-60s campaign group Silver Voices, said: 'It is a ridiculous thing to say. 'We know from our own members that a lot of people have been shivering in their homes with their overcoats on last winter because they were too afraid to put the heating on. 'Many conditions, such as arthritis and respiratory conditions, are made worse by the cold – how can he possibly claim it's had no effect?' Ms Reeves yesterday confirmed a Government U-turn on the issue, and that 'more people will get winter fuel allowance this winter' – but she was unable to say who will qualify. Dennis Reed, of over-60s campaign group Silver Voices, (pictured) said:'We know from our own members that a lot of people have been shivering in their homes with their overcoats on last winter because they were too afraid to put the heating on' She also said the Government will not set out until the autumn how the reinstated payments will be funded. Last night the End Fuel Poverty Coalition wrote to the Department for Work and Pensions and the Office for National Statistics demanding evidence for Mr Bell's claim. Group co-ordinator Simon Francis said: 'One of the things we often talk about in relation to fuel poverty is just how hidden it can be, especially among pensioners, who are often reluctant to come forward and admit they're struggling, even to their own relatives. 'You can easily imagine a situation where a pensioner puts the heating on when family visits, just to make it appear as though everything is fine, when in fact it's not. We're particularly concerned about the health impacts of this.' Mr Francis added that official figures pointed to a 3.3 per cent increase in the usual number of deaths among over-75s last winter. Sir Iain Duncan Smith, a former Conservative Work and Pensions Secretary, accused Mr Bell of 'desperate spin' and that there was no basis for his claim. He added: 'What we do know is that being cold makes many health conditions worse. We also know that millions of older people had less money to pay their gas bill. If Labour really think it had no effect, why are they bringing it back?' In opposition, Labour claimed that means-testing the winter fuel allowance would cause almost 4,000 extra deaths each winter. The finding was based on research by the Left-wing think-tank the Resolution Foundation, which at the time was run by Mr Bell. But yesterday he told MPs the evidence suggested that last winter there had been 'fewer deaths than normal'. The Government's handling of the issue dominated Prime Minister's Questions, with Kemi Badenoch accusing Sir Keir Starmer of presiding over 'chaos'. She added: 'All we see is U-turn after U-turn – his head must be spinning.'
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Pensioners could have their winter payments restored from NEXT WEEK after Labour's U-turn
Winter fuel payments could be restored to all but the wealthiest pensioners as soon as next week, Keir Starmer hinted yesterday. The Prime Minister, who announced a major U-turn on the controversial cut last month, suggested the details could be unveiled in next week's comprehensive spending review. Ministers are looking at a range of options for restoring the payment to most pensioners following a furious public backlash and warnings from Labour MPs that means-testing the vital payment has hurt the party at the polls. Under the leading option, the payment would be restored to all pensioners except those who pay higher rate tax. Around 10million pensioners lost the payment last year after Rachel Reeves used her first major act in government to restrict it to those with incomes of less than £1,000 a month. Campaigners have warned failure to say who would have their payments restored and when is causing further anxiety for pensioners. Dennis Reed, of campaign group Silver Voices, said it would be 'completely unacceptable' to leave pensioners in limbo until the autumn Budget, as No 10 originally suggested. 'Leaving it to the Budget would be far too late to get payments out this winter, which would be seen as yet another betrayal,' he said. Sir Keir declined to comment on the detail of the proposed changes yesterday. But he indicated the Chancellor could release the plans next week. The PM told BBC Radio Four's Today programme ministers 'need to be absolutely clear where the money is coming from' before they set out full details of the U-turn. He added: 'The sooner we have clarity on that, the better', but said there were still 'lots of moving parts' before the review is finalised.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Why people are angry about the personal tax allowance threshold
The personal tax allowance threshold will be under question in Parliament this afternoon after complaints have been made that it is far too low. This afternoon, MPs will debate a petition on the issue, which has been signed by 250,000 people to date, calling for the threshold to be raised from £12,570 to £20,000. Here's what you need to know about the current threshold, when and why it was set, and what the government has said about raising the threshold in the future. The standard personal allowance for income tax is £12,570. In short, this is the amount of income you can earn before you have to pay tax. The threshold was frozen by the previous Conservative government in 2021, with a freeze in place until 2028. Some of the main taxable earnings that will count towards the income threshold include: Private or workplace pensions: Any income from private or occupational pensions is taxable and added to your total income threshold for the year. Employment income: Any wages earned from a job while you claim your pension are taxable. You are still allowed to work and claim your state pension. Self-employment profits: Income earned through self-employment or freelance work is taxable. Rental income: Earnings from renting out property or land are taxable, although you can claim a £1,000 property allowance for small amounts. Savings interest: Interest earned on savings above the personal savings allowance (£1,000 for basic-rate taxpayers or £500 for higher-rate taxpayers) is taxable. The tax threshold freeze has come under fire because it not only means more working people have to pay more tax, but it also means a lot of pensioners will too. Since freezing thresholds raises overall tax revenue without tax rates actually increasing, the policy has also been branded a 'stealth tax' by critics. Currently, 2.6 million people already receive a state pension above the personal allowance limit, The Telegraph reports. Now, the 4.1% rise will drag 650,000 more across the threshold in 2025-26. The petition has a specific ask: to raise the income tax personal allowance from £12,570 to £20,000. The petition reads: "We think it is abhorrent to tax pensioners on their state pension when it is over the personal allowance. "We also think raising the personal allowance would lift many low earners out of benefits and inject more cash into the economy, creating growth." As the petition has been signed by 100,000 people, it has to be debated in Parliament. Campaign groups like Silver Voices have also urged the government to rethink the threshold freeze, arguing that the threshold is low relative to inflation and rising incomes, and unfairly affects pensioners, who have paid tax on their income already. Another petition by the group demanded the government lowered the threshold. The petition, hosted on has accrued 124,000 signatures. The petition was made on behalf of a widow named Colette, aged 75, who is entitled to a proportion of her late husband's state pension as well as her own, and found for the first time this year that the combined total took her over the tax threshold by about £1000, which is now being taxed. More details about what the government thinks about lifting the freeze will be made clear today. But all signs point to the government sticking to its guns. In its response to the petition, the Treasury said it will not raise to the personal allowance threshold to £20,000, and it has kept the freeze to "ensure fiscal responsibility". A spokesperson from the Treasury said: "The government is committed to keeping taxes for working people as low as possible while ensuring fiscal responsibility and so, at our first Budget, we decided not to extend the freeze on personal tax thresholds. "The government has no plans to increase the Personal Allowance to £20,000. Increasing the Personal Allowance to £20,000 would come at a significant fiscal cost of many billions of pounds per annum. "This would reduce tax receipts substantially, decreasing funds available for the UK's hospitals, schools, and other essential public services that we all rely on. It would also undermine the work the Chancellor has done to restore fiscal responsibility and economic stability, which are critical to getting our economy growing and keeping taxes, inflation, and mortgages as low as possible. "The government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy making process. The Chancellor will announce any changes to the tax system at fiscal events in the usual way."
