Wes Streeting was accused of being “cruel” after he told pensioners stripped of winter fuel payments to turn the heating on this weekend.

The Health Secretary was asked about Age UK saying elderly and vulnerable people who are cold should go into debt rather than risk their health during the cold snap.

He told BBC Breakfast: “Well, this is definitely a weekend to turn the heating on, and I’ll just remind people that the Chancellor did take the decision to protect the winter fuel allowance for the poorest pensioners, to protect people this winter and in future winters.

“And of course, the triple lock on pensions is guaranteed, so the state pension is higher this winter than it was last year, and will be higher further still next year.

“That’s why the Chancellor has taken those decisions to make sure that we protect the vulnerable this winter.

“But I would certainly agree that this weekend is a weekend to layer up and put the heating on as well.”

Tory chairman Nigel Huddleston hit out at Mr Streeting over the remarks.

He said: “It’s clear that Wes Streeting has no idea about the impact of Labour’s disastrous decisions.

“After Labour scrapped winter fuel payments for millions of vulnerable pensioners, the Health Secretary’s comments that they should ‘put the heating on’ are not only out of touch but cruel.

“The shameful reality is that many pensioners will face an impossible choice between heating and eating this winter because Labour decided to prioritise pay rises for their union friends over pensioners’ welfare.”

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Sir Keir Starmer’s Government has faced an ongoing backlash for axing the previously universal allowance for about 10million elderly people in a bid to save money.

Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, said it had become “increasingly clear that the Government’s decision to make the winter fuel payment available only to pensioners who receive pension credit has left millions of the poorest and most vulnerable older people unprotected this winter”.

She added: “That’s because, as we predicted, hundreds of thousands who should be getting the benefit haven’t claimed it in the relatively short time available to them to do so, plus many more are on low incomes that take them just above the line to claim.

“We have been hoping and praying that a mild winter would reduce the risks to older people created by the Government’s decision to severely ration winter fuel payment at short notice, but now that arctic air is smothering the country that hope has well and truly gone, leaving millions vulnerable to the severe cold.”

Ministers have blamed the controversial policy on a £22billion black hole left by the Conservatives, which the Tories deny.