More than 12 million people to benefit from state pension increase tomorrow
Well over 12 million people will see their state pension rise by £575 a year from tomorrow.
The triple lock guarantee means it increases every April by inflation, salary increases or 2.5%, whichever is the highest.
Monday’s 4.8% rise – which is in line with average earnings growth – will raise the full rate of the new state pension from £230.25 to £241.30 a week.
Meanwhile, the full basic state pension will rise from £176.45 to £184.90 a week.
The government said imposing a triple lock on pensions was helping to protect families from the falling cost of living.
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All of this comes as global oil prices rise due to the Iran war, which has a direct impact on motorists at the petrol pump.
But some critics, including the Institute for Fiscal Studies, have argued that the triple lock should be scrapped—”a better approach is needed.”
Last year, the think tank warned that this policy’s largesse had a “substantial and growing impact on public finances,” especially as the population ages.
The IFS wrote, “The OBR estimates that spending on state pensions will increase by around £80 billion in today’s terms by the 2070s, and more than half of this increase is estimated to be due to the triple lock.
However, in a more volatile economic environment, the triple lock could cost an additional 1.5% of national income – or £44bn in 2025 terms – as well.
Read more:
Here are all the bills and taxes increasing this month
November: Are the Tories committed to the triple lock?
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said, “I know the global shocks and their impact on our cost of living will be raising concerns for many families.
“This government will always protect our pensioners, and that’s why we are increasing the full rate of the new state pension to £575 this coming year.”
Earlier this week, Reform joined other major British political parties in a commitment to keep UK pensions triple-locked.
At a press conference on Thursday, its economics spokesman Robert Jenrick said the goal would be achieved by cutting the benefit bill by billions of pounds.
