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Hello.
Remember last year when the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said this?
Mr Speaker, the scale of the situation we are dealing with means incredibly tough choices.
I repeat today the commitment that we made in our manifesto to protect the triple lock.
But today I am making the difficult decision.
that those not in receipt of pension credit or certain other means-tested benefits will no longer receive the winter fuel payment from this year onwards.
So that was the situation on 29 July 2024.
How does it sound now on 21 May 2025?
But I recognise that people are still feeling the pressure of the cost of living crisis,
including pensioners.
And as the economy improves,
we want to make sure people feel those improvements in their days as their lives go forward.
And that is why we want to ensure that as we go forward,
more pensioners are eligible for winter fuel payments.
As you would expect, Mr Speaker.
The policy is no longer the policy and the government has U-turned,
as you may have suspected
if you'd been listening to Rachel Reeves when she was on Monday's episode of Newscast.
What has been going on and what will it mean?