Pensioners in peril
I’m sure there are many New Internationalist readers in the UK who are state pensioners, and have been receiving Winter Fuel Payments (WFP) for years while on a better income than many others. In 2023/24, the last government increased WFP from £200 to £500 per year on account of rising fuel prices. More well-off pensioner friends I’ve spoken to about the topic donate at least some of their WFP to charities.
Now, the new Chancellor of the Exchequer has decided to scrap WFP except for the very poorest people on severely means-tested state benefits. As is usual, a government regards the benefits and welfare of people out of waged employment as fodder for savings, and blithely says we ‘must work’ rather than acknowledge inadequate support.
My basic state pension is £212.20 per week, and I’ve been advised that I don’t qualify for the other means-tested benefits. I wonder about both my financial future and the future of charities with such a change. Yet I would say that, as UK state benefits have become increasingly means-tested as part-and-parcel of the deliberate dismantling of the welfare state, far too many disabled jobseekers trying to become a part of the greater whole find a government sinkhole instead.
Don’t dismiss the greens
I was disappointed to read your one-sided dismissal of all green parties (‘Radicalism jettisoned’, NI 551) as a progressive force. Greens and other socialist parties have to balance their ambitious goals with the need to attract support from less radical people. The rightwing press slanders us as campaigners and as citizens. No party has a monopoly of wisdom, and it’s reasonable to argue that some parties have compromised too far – which is also true of the UK’s Labour Party among others. That doesn’t make it OK to dismiss out of hand a political voice for so many parts of an intersectional Earth justice movement that raises issues that other parties don’t touch and leads on ideas that later get taken up by others. This is not the thoughtful and inclusive writing that I expect from my favourite magazine.
Out with the old...
Why does your September/November issue (NI 551) have a picture of a past and failed UK Labour Party leader on the front, while the current Labour Prime Minister is out of focus in the background? Under Jeremy Corbyn, Labour was divided and had the biggest election defeat ever, allowing a rightwing Tory government to pursue policies which inflicted huge hardships and introduced anti-freedom and anti-human rights agendas. Keir Starmer united Labour, tackled antisemitism and led the party to a huge victory. He has already supported workers’ rights, cancelled the Rwanda scheme and is actively promoting the green agenda. All good and positive policies that align with the focus of the New Internationalist. Let’s live in a positive present and not a failed past.
On the other hand...
That was a striking picture of Jeremy Corbyn and Keir Starmer on the cover (NI 551). The ‘Independents’ day’ article about political parties has insight. I also read Mark Seddon’s piece on the UN, remembering that Mark was, many years ago, the editor of Tribune. Somehow we need to make the UN more effective. I also note Tariq Ali’s words on page 79: ‘You can’t just sit and watch the world happen. You must play an active part. You must be engaged.’ How right he is.
Why I...
...try to change the mental health support system.
We all know that the Covid-19 pandemic was a turning point, especially because of its impact on mental health. It made it clear that neither the public nor private healthcare sector could meet the population’s mental health needs. In response, a group of psychologists and I started Psicoopera, a cooperative in Barcelona to provide community-based mental health support, especially for people who cannot afford therapy or struggle to access help. We aim to improve well-being, challenge the inadequate health system and fight the structural inequalities that contribute to poor mental health.
