Pressure is mounting on Downing Street to overhaul a decades-old festive payment for pensioners and benefit claimants, with campaigners branding the current sum "insulting".
Petition Calls for End to 50-Year Freeze
More than 4,100 people have backed an online petition urging the government to increase the Department for Work and Pensions' (DWP) annual Christmas Bonus in line with inflation. The tax-free £10 payment, introduced in 1972 by Ted Heath's Conservative government, has remained unchanged for over half a century.
The petition's creator, David Angus Kirkwood, argues that adjusted for inflation using the Office for National Statistics' composite price index, the bonus should now be worth approximately £169. He states the original £10 was a meaningful contribution towards heating, food, or presents, whereas today it "won't even buy a round of drinks".
Who Qualifies for the Payment?
The DWP issues the one-off £10 payment automatically in December to those receiving a qualifying benefit during the first week of the month. Nearly 15 million people are expected to receive it this year, at a total cost of around £150 million to the Treasury.
Eligible benefits include the State Pension, Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Adult Disability Payment, Attendance Allowance, and Carer’s Allowance, among others. However, a significant group is excluded: roughly 8.3 million people claiming Universal Credit do not qualify for the bonus.
To get the payment, individuals must be present or 'ordinarily resident' in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, or Gibraltar during the qualifying week of December 1-7. Married couples or civil partners where both receive a qualifying benefit will each get the £10.
Political Pressure and Next Steps
The petition, titled 'Adjust the £10 DWP Christmas Bonus introduced in 1972 to reflect inflation', is hosted on the official Petitions Parliament website. If it reaches 10,000 signatures, the government, led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, will be obliged to issue a formal response.
This comes as the new administration faces intense pressure to manage the UK's strained public finances. The petition also proposes that the bonus should only go to "British citizens, who have been claiming benefits for a minimum of six months".
The DWP began distributing the 2025 payment last week, with all payments due to be made by December 31. Recipients should see the payment marked as 'DWP XB' in their bank accounts. No claim is necessary for those who are eligible.
