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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Barney Davis

Elsie was disappointed with PM’s response to her situation, says Susanna Reid

Elsie, the 77-year-old widow who rode the buses around London to avoid extra energy costs, was left “disappointed” with Boris Johnson‘s response to her situation, according to Susannah Reid.

The Prime Minister struggled to provide a straight answer to Elsie’s case on Good Morning Britain after being told the 77-year old was cutting down to one meal a day and resorting to travel on buses to avoid rising energy costs.

Former London mayor Mr Johnson said: “The 24-hour freedom bus pass was actually something that I actually introduced.”

While the Prime Minister did not introduce the freedom pass, he did introduce the 60+ Concessionary Travel Scheme.

The scheme covers those over 60 who do not qualify for the Freedom Pass, which is only eligible as per the age of retirement.

Speaking to LBC’s Tonight with Andrew Marr, and describing her interview with the Prime Minister, Ms Reid said: “I’ve spoken to Elsie, since the interview this morning with the Prime Minister, and she says how disappointed she is with what he said.

“Because she says there are people who are even worse off than she is, and there was no answer for them, apart from ‘oh I was the person who was responsible for the bus pass,’ I mean, as if she’s supposed to be grateful.”

Andrew Marr added: “Which is by the way, not entirely accurate itself because it was the London boroughs who brought that in.”

The Prime Minister said there are “plenty of things more that we are doing”, adding: “What we want to do is make sure that we have people who are in particular hardship looked after by their councils, so we are putting much more money into local councils.

“We have the particular payments to help elderly people in particular with the cost of heating.”

Pushed on what Elsie should cut back on, he said: “I don’t want Elsie to have to cut back on anything.”

He added: “The best answer is to help her abate the cost of energy as we are, but also… to make sure there’s a direct cut in her council tax as a result of what we’re doing.”

He also raised the winter fuel allowance and other “measures that we’ve put in place to help people”.

He said the Government is “making sure that we take the steps now to invest in our energy supply” to “ensure that we have the supply for the medium and the long term”.

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