ON the eve of a vote in the House of commons on the government's plans to axe the unilateral payment of a winter fuel allowance for all pensioners, local political leaders have expressed their views.

Cllr Andrew Jefferies, leader of the Conservative group on Thurrock Council has called on the borough's recently-elected Labour MP, Jen Craft, to vote and in support of keeping the allowance for all pensioners. 

And he says he is disappointed that Mrs Craft has not engaged in discussion about the proposal with the Conservative in Thurrock.

He publicly wrote to Mrs Craft on 21 August, calling on her to oppose the plans in Parliament and to join the cross-party movement which opposes universal removal of payments.

Today (Monday, 9 September) he said "I am disappointed not to have had the courtesy of a reply to my letter, but I sincerely hope that Jen Craft will stand up for all pensioners in Thurrock who look set to lose out if the Government gets its way. 

"She can send a clear message on Tuesday and if enough Labour MPs join with those from other parties, including the Conservatives, the Government could be defeated. Thurrock needs an independently-minded MP and I hope Jen Craft does the right thing and supports her elderly constituents, not cave in to her party bosses who will be safe and warm this winter.

"Energy bills will increase by an average of 10 per cent next month on top of previous hikes. It is inconceivable that pensioners should be hit harder at a time like this by removing their Winter Fuel payments and it will force many who are in no way wealthy to choose between heating or eating. Jen Craft can do the right thing on Tuesday by voting against the Government."

Today Mrs Craft outlined her views, saying: "I was elected as a Labour MP with a mandate to get this country back on its feet after years of Conservative chaos nationally and here in Thurrock locally. Not all of our decisions will be universally popular, but we have had to take tough decisions due to the state the country has been left in. 

"I am frankly astonished to receive this message from Thurrock Conservatives who have hiked our council tax by 18 per cent, due to their financial mismanagement of the council, a tax that hits pensioners particularly hard.

 "The winter fuel allowance is being means-tested, not taken away, and was the only allowance of its kind that was not means-tested. There are around 800,000 pensioners who are entitled to Pension Credit who are currently not claiming it, who would still be entitled to the Winter Fuel Allowance, so I encourage everyone to check their entitlement to this.

 "We are committed to the pension triple lock, which will mean every pensioner receiving on average £900 extra a year. We are also fixing our broken energy system which will result in lower bills for everyone, taking back control of our energy, ensuring that we are no longer dependent on Putin and the global gas prices.

 "If we continue down the path the Tories set, making irresponsible, unfunded economic decisions, everyone in our country will continue to feel the pain.

"We need to stabilise the economy and by doing so we will see: a rise in living standards, an ability to properly fund and support the public services like the NHS, that all of us, particularly pensioners rely on. 

"I will be responding to Councillor Jeffries in due course, I am currently receiving a significant number of enquiries from constituents and I am and will continue to prioritise people who need my urgent help, over political enquiries. 

"So far, my office has handled over 160 cases, many helping people who have been left in desperate circumstances due to not only the perilous economic state of the country, but the appalling mess the Tories left the Council in. I will always put my constituents over political point scoring."

Also voting tomorrow will be East Thurrock's Reform Party MP James McMurdock. He says the decision to scrap the payment must be rescinded.

He says: "Thank you to everyone who has contacted my office about plan to cut the allowance. Many are worried about how this will affect our pensioners, and I share those concerns.

"Minister Rachel Reeves' decision to scrap the winter fuel payments is wrong. Nearly 10 million pensioners are losing a lifeline that helps many of them stay warm.

"On Tuesday, the House of Commons will vote on this awful plan. I will be voting against these cuts. Our pensioners should not have to face a cold and dark winter because of the government's bad choices. There are better ways to save money that won't hurt the elderly.

"I have already written to the Chancellor, asking her to change this plan. Cutting foreign aid would save billions of pounds and allow us to protect our pensioners this winter."