PLAN TO AXE WINTER FUEL PAYMENTS COULD KILL 4,000 BRITONS – Keir Starmer dealt blow as OWN Labour research shows 

Keir Starmer has been dealt a harsh blow as research conducted by Labour has shockingly revealed that almost 4,000 pensioners could die if Winter Fuel Payments are cut.

The analysis warned Conservative proposals to axe the allowance for 10 million elderly Britons in 2017 would increase excess deaths by 3,850.

Labour’s research, which was published when Sir Keir Starmer was serving as Jeremy Corbyn’s Shadow Brexit Secretary, also labelled Theresa May’s proposal the “single biggest attack on pensioners in a generation in our country”.

The research said: “Since the introduction of the Winter Fuel Payment by Labour in 1997, allowing for significant variation in winter weather, deaths among the elderly have fallen from around 34,000 to 24,000.“

However, backbench Labour MPs will now look to mount a rebellion against Starmer himself as the Prime Minister looks to force through his deeply unpopular plan to means-test the energy bill subsidy.

Starmer initially hoped to avoid a Commons cabal scrutinising his proposal by introducing the cuts through secondary legislation but was forced to hold a vote after pressure from the Tories.