I love Christmas but I can’t afford gifts or turkey this year after losing the Winter Fuel Payment
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RETIRED Grandad Simon Moss really loves Christmas - but this year he can't afford turkey or gifts after losing the Winter Fuel Payment. The father-of-two, 70, hardly has any money left each month after paying all of his bills - but this year he is worse off after losing the £200 a year benefit.
![[Simon Moss cannot afford turkey or gifts this Christmas]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/c29d68bf-f685-4660-ad81-7610645b007f_a06bbb.jpg?strip=all&w=760)
Simon, a retired executive assistant from Sunderland, no longer receives a Winter Fuel Payment after the Government reduced the number of pensioners who are eligible earlier this year. In the past, the Winter Fuel Payment was given to everyone aged 66 and above.
![[He loves to decorate his home with ornaments and Christmas trees]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/NINTCHDBPICT000955036774.jpg?strip=all&w=872)
But in July Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced that only those on Pension Credit or other means-tested benefits would receive it. The grandfather-of-three said: “I love Christmas. I just love all the traditions of it and it just warms the cockles of my heart.
“But it’s going to be a struggle financially this Christmas. I no longer qualify for the winter fuel allowance, which has helped out the last few years.”. Simon tries to save money each month towards Christmas, but earlier this year he had to spend all his savings on fixing his car after it broke down.
This year he said he will go without a Christmas dinner on the big day and cannot afford to go to any Christmas parties or buy gifts for loved ones. He said: “I've been a bit of a party animal in the past and I do like my Christmas parties. “This year I won’t be able to go to one and afford the stuff over the years I have got used to doing.”.
