The Conservatives are utilizing Labour’s choice to chop winter gas funds for pensioners to spice up occasion funds, HuffPost UK can reveal.
An e mail to supporters urges them to “chip in any quantity” to assist the Tories marketing campaign in opposition to the coverage.
The money plea comes amid studies that the occasion is struggling for cash as donations dry up.
In line with the most recent Electoral Fee figures, the Tories raised £16 million in donations between April and June this 12 months.
That was £10m lower than Labour obtained in the identical interval, and means down on what the Conservatives got by donors within the run-up to the 2019 election.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has introduced that solely these claiming pension credit score will obtain the winter gas cost – which is value as much as £300 – in future, that means round 10 million previous individuals will miss out.
The controversial choice was permitted by the Commons final week, regardless of greater than 50 Labour MPs failing to vote for it.
The Tory e mail, which was despatched out on Monday, says: “From as we speak Labour’s merciless cuts to winter gas go into impact.
“Over 400 Labour MPs did not cease the cuts once we put it to a vote. And now ten million pensioners are relying on us to battle for them.
“Over 100,000 individuals have signed our petition to maintain winter gas funds.
“However we want no less than double that quantity to make MPs realise how badly they’ve misjudged this.
“So are you able to chip in any quantity as we speak to assist us maintain your Labour MP to account?
“Keir Starmer is forcing hundreds of thousands of pensioners right into a merciless alternative between the garments on their again or the warmth of their properties. He doesn’t have to fret about these selections.
“It’s been reported {that a} Labour Occasion donor has crammed his wardrobe with fits and glasses. It’s simply not proper. And we’ll hold preventing for the hundreds of thousands of pensioners affected by this merciless coverage.
“Assist us do this by chipping in any quantity to our campaigns as we speak.”
Recipients who click on on a ‘donate’ button are then taken to a web page which permits them to decide on how a lot they wish to give,
A Labour supply mentioned: “It was the Tories that crashed the financial system and left individuals throughout the nation worse off. To go away a £22 billion black gap within the public funds when booted out of workplace after which fundraise off the again off it takes some critical brass neck.
“Moderately than filling their very own coffers, the shameless Conservatives would do nicely to acknowledge the catastrophic mess they’ve left this new Labour authorities to repair.”
