A group of pensioners and their allies marched on Stormont on Monday, demanding answers as to why the Government has failed to address the needs of older people.

One pressing issue for pensioners is the cut to winter fuel payments. Last month, Communities Minister Gordon Lyons confirmed that Northern Ireland would be following the Labour Government's lead on means-testing the payments.

One Fermanagh-born pensioner says that older people have been “totally failed by the Stormont Executive.” The National Pensioners Convention in Northern Ireland hosted a protest at Stormont on Monday, led by the Regional Secretary of the National Pensioners Convention in Northern Ireland, John Martin.

The 77-year-old from Enniskillen has been involved in trade union activity his entire life and is a retired postman. The protest had attendees from every part of Northern Ireland. Mr. Martin says there is anger and frustration among pensioners. He said: “Retired people who have worked a lifetime, receive a small work-related pension, and are ineligible to claim pension credit as a result, are now to be denied the winter fuel payment.

“Pensioners in Northern Ireland have been totally failed by the Stormont Executive, who simply copied the policy coming out of London."

He claimed: "There are always alternatives – the cost of the winter fuel payment is less than one-quarter of one per cent of Stormont’s budget – are they saying they couldn’t find that amount to protect pensioners?

“Our anger is compounded by the total exclusion of the needs of pensioners in the draft Programme for Government. We are protesting to demand action from Stormont for older people experiencing real hardship this winter.”

Breaking down how this change affects older people, Mr. Martin said: “A few weeks after Labour gets elected, they bring in this winter fuel cut. On the face of it, it might not seem an awful lot to ordinary folk, but what it does mean is that pensioners who get the new state pension, and are two or three pounds over the pension credit limit, cannot claim the pension credit and are losing £300 because they are a few pounds over the limit.

“There is no mitigation in place for them, so I would ask anybody, would they live on £230 a week, especially with the cost of living and the rise in energy costs? It's not fair.”

He described some of what he has seen across Northern Ireland: “It's the same in Fermanagh as it is in Derry, Down, Belfast – the same disappointment that this has come about without much notice, where people could have got ready for the winter, there is no lead-in.

“There was no impact assessment done by the Labour Party on the effect this would have on older people. I find that very strange. But then again, millionaires are telling folk with no money how to behave, and that's not right.” Alongside pensioners, unions also joined in solidarity, including Unison, Unite the Union, and the Communications Workers Union, as well as various other groups.

When asked what his message was to those who orchestrated the cuts, Mr. Martin replied: “Shame on you.”