Labour

The Conservative Party manifesto launched an all-out attack on pensioner incomes, with three major new burdens placed on older people:

1. Scrapping the ‘triple lock’ on state pensions so that pensioner incomes are no longer protected from a Tory hard Brexit.   
   
2. Means testing Winter Fuel Payments to remove support to heat the homes of 10 million pensioners   
   
3. Forcing those who need social care to pay for it using their homes
   

Labour will stand up for older people by maintaining the triple-lock on state pensions, protect winter fuel payments and free bus passes and spend an additional £8 billion over the Parliament on addressing the Tories’ social care crisis, while also laying the foundations for a new National Care Service.

Commenting on the pensioner penalties being promised by the Conservatives, Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Labour Party, said:

“Theresa May’s nasty party has launched a shameful attack on older people – introducing a compassion tax to force those in need of social care to pay for it with their family home. Labour is standing up for pensioners and guaranteeing the triple-lock on state pensions, as well as giving social care the funding it needs.

“It is clear the Conservatives are offering more of the same, tax giveaways for their billionaire friends and nothing for ordinary people. Labour is standing up for the many, not the few.”

Debbie Abrahams, Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary said:

“The Conservative Party is completely abandoning older people by scrapping the pensions ‘triple lock’, removing the Winter Fuel Allowance from 10 million pensioners, making 34 million people work longer and forcing those who need care to pay for pay for it with their family home.

“This is the direct result of seven years of Tory economic failure. Labour completely oppose this shocking attack on a whole generation.
 
“We will deliver a secure and dignified retirement for the many, not just the few wealthy enough to manage under these Tory attacks.”

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Notes to editors
According to the Resolution Foundation, the Conservative manifesto commitment to means test the Winter Fuel Payment will remove entitlement from 10 million pensioners: http://www.resolutionfoundation.org/media/blog/death-taxes-the-conservative-manifesto-and-the-changing-politics-of-intergenerational-fairness/

Now the Tories have published their manifesto in full we can see how a party that has added £700 billion to the national debt since 2010 really approaches the public finances.

Today they have produced an 84 page document in which they made 60 spending commitments but provide costings for only one, just a day after Philip Hammond revealed he had no idea how much High Speed 2 will cost.

This contrasts with Labour’s fully-costed manifesto, published on Tuesday that identified funding covering all spending commitments.

Commenting, John McDonnell, the Shadow Chancellor, said:

“The Tories’ numbers don’t add up. They have published an 84 page blank cheque that provides a tax giveaway guarantee for big business, while offering a roll of the dice for working families with no commitments to rule out rises in income tax and National Insurance.

“Now we can see why Theresa May is running scared of debating Jeremy Corbyn, when she publishes a document like this that contains more questions than answers. It also further shows how her party has managed to add £700 billion to the national debt since 2010, as they won’t be straight with the British people on how much their plans for a wealthy few truly cost.

“One of the few revenue raisers they identified was withdrawing free school meals from children and withdrawing support for pensioners struggling to heat their homes – this just sums up the Tory approach.

“This is the equivalent of the Prime Minister going to the shops with the nation’s cheque book and not checking the price of the goods as she puts them in the trolley.

“All we know if the Tories are returned next month is that if you’re a pensioner you face the penalty of losing your winter fuel payments, control of your home, and the value of your pension.

“Today has revealed that only the Labour Party at this election will stand up for pensioners, and the 95 percent of taxpayers to build an economy for the many not the few.”

Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Labour Party, responding to the launch of the Conservative manifesto, said:

“Millions of pensioners are betrayed by Theresa May’s manifesto. She is hitting older people with a classic Nasty Party triple whammy:  Scrapping the triple lock on pensions, removing the Winter Fuel Allowance and forcing those who need social care to pay for it with their homes.

“The Conservatives’ record is one of broken promises and failure. They promised to raise living standards, but working families are set to be on average over £1,400 a year worse off. They promised to improve all standards of NHS care, but A&Es are in crisis. They promised to protect school spending, but schools are facing crippling cuts and class sizes are soaring. You can’t trust a word Theresa May says.

“Despite Theresa May’s warm words, she leads a party that has created a rigged economy that only works for the super-rich. The Conservatives have not changed. While the Labour Party has promised to protect low and middle earners from any tax rises, all Theresa May has promised is a cut to Corporation Tax for their big business friends. Unlike the Conservatives, Labour is standing up for the many, not the few.”

Andrew Gwynne, Labour’s National Election co-ordinator, responding to the launch of the Conservative manifesto, said:

“Behind the rhetoric, this is a manifesto that offers the majority of working people and pensioners insecurity with a huge question mark over their living standards.

“The tax guarantee they previously made is gone. While they’ll guarantee Corporation Tax falls to 17p they’re dropping their promise not to raise income tax and National Insurance contributions, raising the spectre of tax rises on lower and middle incomes. No wonder they’ve dropped their previous promise to raising living standards and the phrase “living standards” doesn’t appear at all.

“This manifesto is proof the Tories are ditching any claim to stand up for older people. Pensioners stand to lose the pension guarantee in the next parliament, the Winter Fuel Allowance is being hacked away at and their social care plans could see those who need care forced to pay for it with their homes.

“For our public services – slashed back by the Tories – there’s nothing but insecurity in these plans. They’ve failed to match Labour’s commitment on education and there’s no detail other than a vague promise on giving the NHS funding – a promise they made in the past and broke.

“The Tories stand up only for the few. For the many they offer the prospect of five years of insecurity.”

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Barbara Keeley, Labour’s Shadow Mental Health Minister, responding to the Tories’ social care announcement ahead of their manifesto, said:

“You can’t trust the Tories’ promises on social care. In their last manifesto they promised a cap on care costs. But they broke their promise, letting older and vulnerable people down.

“It’s the Tories who have pushed social care into crisis; their cuts to councils have meant £4.6bn axed from social care budgets between 2010-2015, leaving 1.2 million people struggling to get by without care. And NHS bosses have recently said that the money the Tories promised them won’t help alleviate the problems, with bosses warning the system won’t see anything like the level of resource required.

“We need real action to fix the system, not reheated broken promises with little detail about how they’ll be delivered.

“While the Tories offer more of the same failure and broken promises, Labour has pledged action. We’ll increase social care budgets by £8bn over the lifetime of the Parliament, including an additional £1bn for the first year. We will set up a National Care Service to provide the care that people deserve.”