Sunak’s Downing Street ‘committed’ to state pension triple lock despite cost concerns

Published

2 years ago

September 12, 2023

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Downing Street has said it remains “committed” to the pensions triple lock amid a debate about its cost to the public purse.

The triple lock is a government promise to raise publicly funded pensions by the level of average earnings, inflation or 2.5% – whichever is the highest.

It means the state pension could rise by 8.5% next year after new data showed that average weekly earnings growth in the three months to July rose by that amount in annual terms.

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The triple lock was designed to ensure people’s pensions were not affected by gradual rises in the cost of living over time.

But there have been questions as to whether the government would stick to the manifesto promise given that pay and inflation are running at higher levels than usual.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies said in a recent report that the lock’s annual cost for the Treasury could reach anywhere between an additional £5bn and £45bn a year by 2050 due to the uncertainty created by the terms of the policy.

Critics also point to the impact the current cost of living crisis is having on working-age people who are having to contend with rent hikes and rising mortgage rates.

Labour has also refused to give a guarantee that it will be able to stick with the policy if it wins the next election.

Speaking to Sky News’ Politics Hub programme, shadow culture secretary Thangam Debbonaire said she wished she could give a “definitive answer” when pressed on the issue by Sophy Ridge.

But she said it would be “irresponsible” to make such a promise when there could be another year of Conservative economic policies.

“The fundamental principle that we are on the side of pensioners remains,” she added. “But we have got to try and find a way of balancing the economy for everyone.”

Former Conservative chancellor, Lord Clarke, told Sky’s Sophy Ridge last week the government should ditch the lock.

Sunak’s Number 10 committed to policy

Number 10 today said it was sticking with the policy – although it refused to indicate how much the state pension will rise ahead of the “formal process” for uprating.

The prime minister’s official spokesman said: “You know there’s a formal process for this when it comes to uprating but we remain committed to the triple lock which has seen 200,000 pensioners lifted out of absolute poverty after housing costs are taken into account.”

Asked whether the average earnings figure of 8.5%, which includes bonuses, would be applied rather than a figure excluding bonuses, the official replied: “All those decisions on uprating are taken on a later date, later this year. I can’t pre-empt that work.”

The spokesperson also said the government would ensure the state pension “remains sustainable and fair across generations”.

Pensions secretary suggests figures not settled

Mel Stride, the work and pensions secretary, suggested pensioners may not get the 8.5% increase in the state pension that earnings figures suggest.

He told BBC Radio 4’s World At One: “There clearly is a difference if you take into account the non-consolidated elements of pay in recent times, but these are all decisions that I have to take with the chancellor as part of a very clear process, a statutory process actually, that I go through in the autumn.

“So I didn’t want to get into the weeds of exactly how I’m going to go about that.

“But the overarching point about the triple lock is that we remain committed to it.”

Asked whether he was not ruling out using a lower figure based on earnings without bonuses – at 7.8% – he said: “I’m not going to get drawn into those kinds of questions.”

Triple lock could be Labour-Tory dividing line

The Tories have said they are committed to keeping the pledge after the next general election but Labour has so far refused to offer the same guarantee.

Shadow environment secretary Steve Reed said it was “very important that older people are able to live with decency and respect under all circumstances”.

But he added: “We need to see where we are by the time of the next election.”

“It was pretty much a year ago to the month when the Conservative government launched that disastrous mini-budget that crashed the economy and caused prices in the shops to rocket and interest rates to escalate beyond levels that people have seen for a decade,” he said.

“I can’t stand here and tell you what the Tories are going to do over the next year.

“So, we will need to look at where we are come the election. But, it will be in our next manifesto.”

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said the latest earnings figures were “heartening” and that the number of employees on payroll was “close to record highs”.

“Wage growth remains high, partly reflecting one-off payments to public sector workers, but for real wages to grow sustainably we must stick to our plan to halve inflation,” he said.

But Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner said the UK had experienced “13 years of economic failure by the Conservatives, and people can see that their cost of living has increased”.

She said wage rises have not risen across the board while bills continue to rise, so “most people are still finding it incredibly difficult”.

Politics

Starmer and Macron agree need for ‘new deterrent’ to stop small boat crossings

Published

2 hours ago

July 10, 2025

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Starmer and Macron agree need for 'new deterrent' to stop small boat crossings

Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron have agreed the need for a “new deterrent” to deter small boats crossings in the Channel, Downing Street has said.

The prime minister met Mr Macron this afternoon as part of the French president’s state visit to the UK, which began on Tuesday.

High up the agenda for the two leaders is the need to tackle small boat crossings in the Channel, which Mr Macron said yesterday was a “burden” for both the UK and France.

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The small boats crisis is a pressing issue for the prime minister, given that more than 20,000 migrants crossed the English Channel to the UK in the first six months of this year – a rise of almost 50% on the number crossing in 2024.

Sir Keir is hoping he can reach a deal for a one-in one-out return treaty with France, ahead of the UK-France summit on Thursday, which will involve ministerial teams from both nations.

The deal would see those crossing the Channel illegally sent back to France in exchange for Britain taking in any asylum seeker with a family connection in the UK.

However, it is understood the deal is still in the balance, with some EU countries unhappy about France and the UK agreeing on a bilateral deal.

French newspaper Le Monde reports that up to 50 small boat migrants could be sent back to France each week, starting from August, as part of an agreement between Sir Keir and Mr Macron.

A statement from Downing Street said: “The prime minister met the French President Emmanuel Macron in Downing Street this afternoon.

“They reflected on the state visit of the president so far, agreeing that it had been an important representation of the deep ties between our two countries.

“Moving on to discuss joint working, they shared their desire to deepen our partnership further – from joint leadership in support of Ukraine to strengthening our defence collaboration and increasing bilateral trade and investment.”

It added: “The leaders agreed tackling the threat of irregular migration and small boat crossings is a shared priority that requires shared solutions.

“The prime minister spoke of his government’s toughening of the system in the past year to ensure rules are respected and enforced, including a massive surge in illegal working arrests to end the false promise of jobs that are used to sell spaces on boats.

“The two leaders agreed on the need to go further and make progress on new and innovative solutions, including a new deterrent to break the business model of these gangs.”

Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, seized on the statement to criticise Labour for scrapping the Conservatives’ Rwanda plan, which the Tories claim would have sent asylum seekers “entering the UK illegally” to Rwanda.

He said in an online post: “We had a deterrent ready to go, where every single illegal immigrant arriving over the Channel would be sent to Rwanda.

“But Starmer cancelled this before it had a chance to start.

“Now, a year later, he’s realised he made a massive mistake. That’s why numbers have surged and this year so far has been the worst in history for illegal channel crossings.

“Starmer is weak and incompetent and he’s lost control of our borders.”

Politics

Ex-Tory chairman Sir Jake Berry defects to Reform

Published

2 hours ago

July 10, 2025

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Ex-Tory chairman Sir Jake Berry defects to Reform

Ex-Tory chairman Sir Jake Berry has defected to Reform, in the latest blow to the Conservatives.

The former MP for Rossendale and Darwen, who served as Northern Powerhouse minister under Boris Johnson and lost his seat last year, said he had defected to Nigel Farage’s party because the Tories had “lost their way”.

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Reform UK confirmed the defection to Sky News, which was first broken by The Sun.

Speaking to the paper, Sir Jake said Mr Farage’s party was the “last chance to pull Britain back from terminal decline”.

“Our streets are completely lawless,” he said.

“Migration is out of control. Taxes are going through the roof.

“And day after day, I hear from people in my community and beyond who say the same thing: ‘This isn’t the Britain I grew up in’.”

Sir Jake accused his former party of “abandoning the British people” but said he was not “giving up”.

“I’m staying. And I’m fighting.

“Fighting for the Britain I want my kids, and one day, my grandkids, to grow up in.”

Mr Farage welcomed what he said was “a very brave decision” by Sir Jake.

“His admission that the Conservative government he was part of broke the country is unprecedented and principled,” he added.

A Conservative Party spokesman said: “Reform support increasing the benefits bill by removing the two-child cap, and nationalising British industry. By contrast the Conservatives, under new leadership, will keep making the case for sound money, lower taxes and bringing the welfare bill under control.

“We wish Jake well in his new high spend, high tax party.”

Sir Jake’s defection to Reform comes just days after former Conservative cabinet minister David Jones joined Reform UK, which continues to lead in the polls.

Mr Jones, who was MP for Clwyd West from 2005 until standing down in 2024, said he had quit the Tories after “more than 50 years of continuous membership”.

Sir Jake was the MP Rossendale and Darwen in Lancashire between 2010 and 2024, when he was defeated by Labour’s Andy MacNae.

He held several ministerial posts including in the Department for Housing, Communities and Local Government, Energy and Climate Change and the Cabinet Office.

He was also chairman of the Conservative Party from September to October 2022, under Liz Truss.

Announcing his defection – which comes a year after the Tories suffered their worst ever election defeat – Sir Jake said “Britain was broken” and “the Conservative governments I was part of share the blame”.

“We now have a tax system that punishes hard work and ambition,” he said.

“Just this week, we saw record numbers of our brightest and best people leaving Britain because they can’t see a future here. At the same time, our benefits system is pulling in the world’s poor with no plan for integration and no control over who comes in.

“If you were deliberately trying to wreck the country, you’d be hard-pressed to do a better job than the last two decades of Labour and Tory rule.

“Millions of people, just like me, want a country they can be proud of again. The only way we get that is with Reform in government. That’s why I’ve resigned from the Conservative Party. I’m now backing Reform UK and working to make them the next party of government.”

He added: “And with Nigel Farage leading Reform, we’ve got someone the country can actually trust. He doesn’t change his views to fit the mood of the day. And people respect that. So do I. That’s why I believe he should be our next prime minister.”

A Labour Party spokesperson said: “Not content with taking advice from Liz Truss, Nigel Farage has now tempted her Tory Party chairman into his ranks.

“It’s clear Farage wants Liz Truss’s reckless economics, which crashed our economy and sent mortgages spiralling, to be Reform’s blueprint for Britain. It’s a recipe for disaster and working people would be left paying the price.”

Politics

Controversial welfare bill passes final Commons stage – but only after another concession

Published

2 hours ago

July 10, 2025

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Controversial welfare bill passes final Commons stage - but only after another concession

Sir Keir Starmer’s watered down welfare bill has passed its final stage in the Commons, after another concession was made to MPs.

The Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payments Bill passed by 336 votes to 242 on Wednesday night – a majority of 94.

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In a bid to thwart further opposition to the bill following last week’s climbdown, the government said it would not try to introduce any more reforms to personal independence payments (PIP) until a review by work and pensions minister Sir Stephen Timms on the assessment process has concluded.

Sir Stephen said he wanted to finish his review by next autumn, but that the government would not agree to complete the review in 12 months as some MPs wanted.

Marie Tidball, the Labour MP who had called for the 12-month limit, later signalled she was happy with the government’s compromise.

Ministers also agreed to her calls to have a majority of the taskforce looking at PIP to be disabled or from disability organisations, and for the outcome of the review to come before any PIP changes. It will also be voted on by MPs.

A total of 47 Labour MPs have rebelled against the government to vote against its welfare reforms.

Mother of the House Diane Abbott, former minister Dawn Butler, Andy McDonald, Stella Creasy and Jonathan Brash were among those in the “no” lobby.

Meanwhile, MPs rejected a separate amendment by Green MP Sian Berry, which called for the basic rate of universal credit to increase by 4.8% above inflation each year until 2030.

A total of 39 Labour MPs voted for scrapping the clauses that halved Universal Credit for new claimants – the only major cut left in the bill after the government made its concessions.

The passing of the bill will come as a relief to Sir Keir Starmer, who last week was forced into a humiliating climbdown over his flagship welfare package in the face of significant opposition from his own MPs.

Prior to the vote last Tuesday, the government offered significant concessions including exempting existing personal independence payment claimants (PIP) from stricter new criteria and only freezing and cutting the universal credit health top-up for new applications.

As the vote last week unfolded, it offered further confessions amid concerns the bill could be voted down – notably, that changes in eligibility for PIP would not take place until a review he is carrying out into the benefit is published in autumn 2026.

They ended up voting for only one part of the plan: a cut to Universal Credit (UC) sickness benefits for new claimants from £97 a week to £50 from 2026/7.

A total of 49 Labour MPs voted against the bill – the largest rebellion in a prime minister’s first year in office since 47 MPs voted against Tony Blair’s Lone Parent benefit in 1997, according to Professor Phil Cowley from Queen Mary University.