Chris Kamara and Marie Curie deliver terminal illness pension petition to Downing Street

Chris Kamara delivered a petition to Number 10 in memory of his mother, Irene.

Football pundit Chris Kamara travelled to Downing Street as part of a campaign to give people dying of a terminal illness early access to their pension.

The 65-year-old former footballer, who lives in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, travelled to Westminster on Thursday (23 February) with representatives of cancer charity Marie Curie to hand over the petition, which has over 165,000 signatures.

Kamara's mother, Irene, was cared for by the charity's nurses in 2003 after she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

He told ITV's Good Morning Britain: "People shouldn't be allowed to die in poverty - 90,000 people die in poverty (every year), so that's 10 an hour, the capacity of Wembley Stadium when you take it as a whole. So that's got to stop."

"Once you're diagnosed with a terminal illness you've not got long left, you have to stop your job, your circumstances change, you're devastated, so social security money isn't enough, so access [to] the state pension [is needed]."

Middlesbrough-born Kamara, who played for clubs including Leeds United, Sheffield United and Bradford City, said being able to access a pension early would make a big difference for those with a terminal illness.

He said: "I'm going to Downing Street with two ladies whose circumstances have completely changed, they've been diagnosed with terminal illness and their partners have had to give up work to look after them.

Kamara with his mother, Irene, on his wedding day.

"They just haven't got any money. Their life has changed completely out of all proportion."

He added: "[Terminally ill patients are] not getting enough money to help them get by so they have their pension, they worked hard. If you worked hard for 35-45 years of your life, you've got three or four years until you're 66.

"Why not access your pension that you're never [going to] get?"

Research by the University of Loughborough suggests a change to pension rules for terminally ill patients would cost the government £114million per year.

Kamara's mother was cared for by Marie Curie nurses while she had breast cancer in 2003.

A Department for Work and Pensions spokesperson said: "A terminal diagnosis is an unimaginable challenge, and our priority is providing people with financial support quickly and compassionately.

"Those nearing the end of their lives can get fast-track access to a range of benefits without needing a face-to-face assessment or waiting period, with the majority receiving the highest rate of those benefits.

"In 2022 we extended that support so thousands more people nearing end of life would be able to access these benefits earlier through special benefit rules."

Last year, the legal definition of terminal illness was changed so people considered to have less than 12 months to live - rather than the current six months - can have fast-track access to benefits such as Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payments.

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