South Wales Evening Post - 23 February 2009
Controversial plans to charge frail pensioners £100 for an emergency lifeline service have been withdrawn by Swansea Council.
Pensioners had feared they would have to choose between spending cash to heat their homes or pay a £100 yearly price tag after they received consultation letters from the council.
However, last night, council leader Chris Holley announced that the proposal to charge for the emergency Lifeline system, which offers an instant connection to carers if the user should fall or become ill, had been removed from the budget.
Speaking ahead of the council's budget meeting, councillor Holley said the system would remain in place.
he said: "I wish to apologise for the letter that went out and the consultation process with regard to the lifeline — Community Alarm Users.
"As a result of the queries and the concerns of all members, I am today withdrawing it from the budget and the director will find the saving elsewhere.
"We will also carry out a review which will help us understand the total usage and the effects of the service."
The issue hit the headlines last week when the council's budget plans were announced.
Council chiefs said they were consulting pensioners on introducing a yearly charge, designed to improve and maintain the service, but that no final decision had been made.
Every year, 200,000 calls are made to its call centre by the 8,000 people in Swansea who rely on the service.
Service users contacted the Evening post to complain about the charge, with some saying they could not afford to pay for such a vital service.
Mike Tonkin, aged 69, of Fairwood Common, whose 95-year-old mum, Vida, is dependent on the alarm system, said: "My mum has had a letter from Swansea Council about the community alarm system, which says the local authority are looking to charge £100 a year.
"My mum has a choice whether she keeps herself warm and falls on the floor without an alarm, or she has the lifeline."
However, the council has now backtracked, and the charge has been removed from the budget.
Councillors were last night discussing the full implications of the budget, which was drawn up after the authority revealed it was facing a £14 million black hole.
