Rachel Reeves faced backlash from unions and her own MPs after refusing to reverse the decision to axe the winter fuel allowance for pensioners. Unions are pushing to reverse the move, which strips 10 million pensioners of up to £300 a year. Reeves used her keynote speech at the Labour conference to insist she would not 'duck decisions' and that the 'road ahead is steeper than we expected'. Unite chief Sharon Graham called ministers 'cruel' and former shadow chancellor John McDonnell said the government was making a 'terrible mistake'. Reeves struck a more optimistic tone about the country's future, vowing no return to austerity.