How your Merseyside MPs voted in Winter Fuel Payment cut vote - as elderly to lose £300
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Merseyside’s MPs were left split over the controversial move to cut winter fuel allowance for older people as the government held off a sizeable Labour abstention. Members of Parliament have backed proposals to remove the winter concession to all pensioners apart from the most vulnerable.
The hotly-debated issue had put the new Labour government under immediate pressure and had left the party’s representatives in our region split. Of the 16 MPs to cover the Liverpool City Region, only one - Ian Byrne - voted in favour of doing away with the cut.
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Hide AdMr Byrne was one of a handful of MPs to lose the Labour whip in the first vote of the new Parliament when he defied government orders and voted to end the two-child benefit cap. He now sits as an independent.
Of the Merseyside contingent four abstained – including Kim Johnson, Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside, who posted on social media that she felt the move was “shocking” but was unable to attend the vote owing to a dental procedure. Paula Barker, Labour MP for Liverpool Wavertree, said she wasn’t able to vote owing to a “longstanding prior engagement” in the city.
The remaining 11 members voted with the government to move forward with the cut. umber 10 held firm against pressure to soften the impact of the cut in the run-up to the Commons vote, saying on Tuesday morning that there were no plans to widen eligibility for the payment.
Winter fuel payment - what is it & the controversy?
Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in July that part of a move to cut what was said to be a £22billion "black hole" in public finances, all pensioners would no longer get their £300 winter payment, which is to help with heating their homes.
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Hide AdNow that it has passed through parliament, the number of pensioners who get the grant will be cut by just under 10 million. Previously around 11.4 million elderly got the money, with the figure now dropping to 1.5million.
The move is set to save the government around £1.4billion this year. Ministers insist that the measure is necessary in order to fill a “£22 billion black hole” in the public finances which they say was left behind by their Tory predecessors.
So, this winter only people claiming pension credit or other means-tested benefits, over the age of 66, will get help with fuel bills.
How did MPs vote?
Sir Keir Starmer won the vote by a majority of 120 despite the abstentions and single Labour vote in favour of the opposition motion. Overall, there were 348 votes cast pushing for the cut proposal to remain, while 228 voted against.
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Hide AdIn a statement regarding her absence, Ms Johnson said: “Unfortunately, I am undergoing pre-arranged dental surgery this week, so I am unable to attend Parliament. This means that I will be unable to vote to participate in today’s crucial Winter Fuel Payment vote. I have been inundated with messages and correspondence from constituents on this issue and I share their concerns. I have consistently requested that the government reverses this shocking decision.”
Ms Johnson said had she been in parliament today she “could not have voted with the government in favour of an assault which puts people’s lives at serious risk.” She said missing the vote “pains me” and took her duty to be in Parliament “very seriously.”


Mrs Barker, who shared a letter to the Chancellor on social media ahead of the vote, said she felt the government should “halt this decision and look at the public health issues this could lead to.”
How our MPs voted in full:
For the motion to block the cut: Ian Byrne
Against: David Baines, Patrick Hurley, Bill Esterson, Derek Twigg, Justin Madders, Dan Carden, Angela Eagle, Alison McGovern, Matt Patrick, Peter Dowd, Anneliese Midgley
Abstained: Paula Barker, Maria Eagle, Marie Rimmer, Kim Johnson
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