Sarwar presses SNP for £70 fuel payment action
Scots Labour leader to demand help for pensioners
ANAS Sarwar has called on the SNP Government to issue an emergency £70 for struggling pensioners to keep them warm this winter.
The Scottish Labour leader urged First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to “take responsibility” for the looming cost of living crisis and pick up the powers devolved to the Holyrood to raise the Winter Fuel Payment.
In a speech to the Labour conference in Brighton today, Sarwar will call for the Nats to fill the gap as the cost of gas and electricity is due to rise steeply within days.
The energy price cap will increase by £139 to £1277 on October 1 leaving 150,0000 Scottish pensioners living in poverty facing a desperate choice.
The push from Labour comes after it was revealed that a woman in her 90s starved to death, the first fatality from lack of food recorded in Scotland for at least 20 years.
Sarwar will tell conference that the Scottish Parliament has been granted powers to take action to raise Winter Fuel Payments and alleviate pensioner fuel poverty.
But the SNP has delayed the devolution of the Winter Fuel Payments from the Department for Work and Pensions until 2024 because of bureaucratic obstacles.
Sarwar will demand Sturgeon gets the powers in order so the Scottish Parliament to provide a £70 supplement to low-income pensioners, which would be half the cost of the fuel cap increase.
The total cost of the one-off supplement would be £9.5million.
Sarwar is expected to say: “This winter too many Scots are facing fuel poverty and thousands more are on the brink as energy prices spiral out of control.
“The Scottish Parliament has the power to make winter payments reflect the pressures on fuel poor households, but the SNP has delayed taking responsibility.”
Pensioner campaign groups have warned that the energy price will lead to preventable deaths.