MILLIONS of elderly Brits will another receive a one-off £300 payment next April, Jeremy Hunt is expected confirm today.
The Chancellor is set to announce a second cost of living payment during the Autumn Statement at 11.30am.
Jeremy Hunt will announce a £300 payment for pensioners during the Autumn Statement
The £300 payment is expected to specifically go to Brits who are over the state pension age – those born on or before September 25, 1956.
Meanwhile, Brits on benefits are set to receive £650 and there will be another £150 disability payment.
During the budget, the Chancellor also plans to raise the National Living Wage to £10.40 as well as hiking pensions and benefits by inflation.
But he will offset the handouts with sweeping spending cuts and tax rises to repair a £60billion black hole in the nation’s finances.
Mr Hunt is set to reduce the Energy Price Guarantee so the average family pays around £3,000 for bills – above the current £2,500 but less than Ofgem’s £4,000.
More details about the disability payment will emerge at 11.30am today, when Mr Hunt finally delivers the Autumn Statement in the Commons.
His big announcement comes as inflation this week hit an eye-watering 11.1 per cent.
The Chancellor is set to say: “High inflation is the enemy of stability. It means higher mortgage rates, more expensive food and fuel bills, businesses failing and unemployment rising. It erodes savings, causes industrial unrest, and cuts funding for public services. It hurts the poorest the most and eats away at the trust upon which a strong society is built.
“We are taking a balanced path to stability: tackling the inflation that eats away at a pensioners savings and increases the cost of mortgages to families, at the same time supporting the economy to recover. But it depends on taking difficult decisions now.”
Who will get the pensioner cost of living payment?
The current “Pensioner Cost of Living payment” is being handed out to millions on a low income.
You qualify under the current rules if you normally get the Winter Fuel Payment, but this could change under the new rules.
The £300 cost of living payment is paid on top of the other winter support.
It means eligible households will see their payments at least double.
Other ways pensioners can get help
Pension Credit
Pension Credit is extra money to help with daily living costs for anyone who’s reached state pension age and is on a low income.
You can get Pension Credit even if you have other income, savings or own your own home.
The payment tops up weekly income to a minimum level of £182.60 a week for single pensioners or £278.70 for couples.
It is a tax-free payment usually made every four weeks, and even those who have a retirement income through a private pension can claim Pension Credit.
According to the government, around 1.4million pensioners are already receiving the benefit, but there could be as many as 850,000 other households missing out.
Warm home discount
Millions of people will get £150 off their energy bill between now and March 2023 as part of the Warm Home Discount (WHD) scheme.
Around 2.8 million people are eligible for the £150, which has gone up since last year by £10.
Households in England and Wales don’t need to apply to get the discount and they’ll automatically qualify if they are receiving certain benefits.
Energy suppliers will automatically dish out the discount, as long as you were receiving certain benefits on or before Sunday, August 21.
State Pension
State pension is the income paid to you by the Government after you reach a certain age.
Men born on or after April 6, 1951, and women born on or after April 6, 1953, are eligible for new State Pension.
If you qualify for the full new State Pension, you can expect £185.15 a week.
If you reached State Pension age before April 6, 2016, you’ll get the State Pension under the old rules , which is £141.85 a week instead.
Cold weather payment
When temperatures drop, bills can rise.
This is because more energy is required to warm homes, among other things.
But if temperatures hit zero degrees Celsius or below for at least seven days, some households are eligible for a £25 payment to help with essential costs.
The cold weather payment scheme is only open between November 1 and March 31 each year to cover the winter months.
You can get the cash more than once, too.
For every seven-day period that temperatures are zero degrees or below, eligible households will automatically be granted £25.
