Cold kills 200 British pensioners a day during winter. Britain has 12 million elderly people.

Cold kills 200 British pensioners a day during winter. Britain has 12 million elderly people.

“”Nine elderly people died every hour from cold-related illnesses last winter against a background of soaring energy bills.

Official figures show the number of deaths linked to cold over the four-month period reached
25,400 in England and Wales, plus 2,760 in Scotland.

Charities and energy company critics claim the UK has the highest winter death rate in northern Europe, even worse than much colder countries such as Finland and Sweden.

Winter worries: More than 300,000 UK pensioners have died of cold related illnesses since 1997
There are fears the toll could rise this year following a recent barrage of price rises that may frighten elderly people into not turning on their heating.

Heated issue: Pensioners see rising fuel bills and worry about whether they can afford to warm the house
While the UK death rate is high, the total was down by around 30 per cent compared with 2008/9 because there were fewer flu outbreaks, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The Coalition government has cut the last administration’s Winter Fuel Allowance payments of £250 for pensioners and £400 for those over 80, by £50.

ENERGY BILL RISES
Energy providers have announced big rises in prices this winter.
• Scottish Power is increasing electricity bills by 8.9 per cent.
• Scottish & Southern Electricity is putting up gas by almost 10 per cent.
• British Gas announced a 7 per cent rise on gas and electricity

Michelle Mitchell, director of the charity Age UK, said:'It’s still unacceptable that in this day and age tens of thousands more older people die in this country every winter from the effects of the cold weather.
'As another winter sets in, plummeting temperatures will once again spell misery, ill-health and, in some cases, even death for too many people in later life across the country.

'The simple fact that the UK has one of the highest winter mortality rates in Europe – higher than even Sweden or Finland – makes it clear this is very much a home-grown problem.

The fact is the UK’s elderly have seen their living standards plummet since the 80’s, and as a result millions of pensioners have and are living in poverty, after paying taxes and N.I. Contributions into the system all their working lives, ie for 30, 40, and 50 years.

Please go to both my petitions to help the elderly.

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/40711

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/51449;