An email from a local resident has revealed the stark reality of Labour's cruel decision to axe Winter Fuel Payments for 16,971 pensioners in Redditch and the Villages.
Rachel was copied into the email which was sent to Labour MP Chris Bloore. Robin, the local resident who sent it, gave Rachel permission to share it in order to highlight the devastating impact the axing of this vital heating bill support has had on their life.
Mr Bloore followed the Labour Whip and voted to axe Winter Fuel Payments for 16,971 of his constituents. This is despite warnings that pensioners would be forced to choose between heating and eating this winter.
Chris and his Labour colleagues were forced to vote on the Government’s cruel cuts only after strong pressure from Conservatives who have vowed to continue the fight to help protect vulnerable older people during the winter and lobby the Government to change their plans.
Rachel said:
"With the colder temperatures setting in, it’s only now we're really going to see the impact of Labour's cruel axing of Winter Fuel Payments for 16,971 pensioners in Redditch and the Villages.
"Below is an email from a local resident to our MP which they copied me in to and gave me permission to share.
"Our MP voted to axe Robin's Winter Fuel Payment. Please read their email to see what impact the axing of this vital heating bill support has had on their life."
In their email to Chris Bloore, Robin said:
"Mr Bloore,
"First may I thank you for taking the time to reply to my last email, even if it wasn't the answer I hoped to hear. I respect your conviction in the matter of Assisted Euthanasia.
"I hope you are nice and warm, because my wife and I are both suffering a great deal of pain because of the cold. We both have spinal problems, my wife has Spinal Stenosis and the cold affects her greatly, even at 69 years of age. We can no longer afford to have the heating on so we must suffer, thanks to your party removing our winter fuel payments.
"I was in a RTC in France, driving an articulated vehicle to help our overseas trade. That drunk Frenchman caused my back to be broken in the lumbar area. I have lived in constant pain since December 1979 living on a diet of painkillers up to and including Morphine.bthe pain remained fairly constant in recent years, due to the winter fuel allowance. This year and for the foreseeable future I am going to be in even more pain because we cannot afford to heat our house.
"Between us this is going to cost much more in medication than the fuel allowance you have taken off us, and millions like us! My intake of Oramorph has almost doubled over the last few days, I had no sleep at all last night due to pain, I spent 12 hours watching films having used our stairlift to go to bed at 18:30 to keep warm. My wife was in so much pain she couldn't make it to bed and slept on the sofa with hot water bottles and every blanket we own. Even with 2 lots of mobility allowance we can't afford to heat the house.
"I hope you are warm, pain free and have enough money to have your heating on, because we and millions of others are not. You don't need to vote in favour of voluntary euthanasia because you are going to kill everyone over the age of 75 at this rate.
"Thanks!"
