Pensioners angered by the soaring number of deaths from winter cold applauded Westminster calls to take greedy energy companies into public ownership yesterday.

Activists shot their hands up in unison in a packed Commons committee room when asked by National Pensioners Convention general secretary Dot Gibson to show if they wanted public ownership.

Pensioners came to Westminster from all over Britain to lobby their MPs, spurred on by the grim announcement that 31,000 people died from cold last winter.

A rip-roaring speech by activist and former union leader Rodney Bickerstaffe highlighted threats to pensioners' universal benefits such as bus passes and the winter fuel payment.

Mr Bickerstaffe urged a huge push by pensioners to stop the trend in all the main parties toward "nibbling away" at these benefits.

He proclaimed to huge applause: "31,000 of us dying - that is injustice. Standing up for our universal benefits - that is dignity."

Left MP Kelvin Hopkins urged bigger taxes on the rich to pay for a national care service free at the point of use.

He praised Labour leader Ed Miliband for urging a freeze on energy prices.

But Mr Hopkins emphasised the need to go further and take the companies into public ownership following the "completely unacceptable" 29 per cent rise in winter fuel deaths.

The energy sector "has to be planned, has to be invested in and made properly accountable to all of us democratically," said Mr Hopkins.

Public Service Pensioners Council chairman Brian Sturtevant warned that the new single-tier state pension due to be introduced from 2016 was "smoke and mirrors" from the government and many pensioners would be worse off than under the present system.

The Treasury had admitted that it would spend a smaller percentage of GDP on the new pension, he pointed out.

Robin Priestley from pressure group 38 degrees expressed solidarity with pensioner campaigners who face restrictions under the government's pernicious lobbying Bill, which he denounced as "the gagging Bill."

Prime Minister David Cameron faced protests at Question Time over soaring energy bills, profiteering companies and winter deaths.