Pensions - Articles - State pension under scrutiny in benefit uprating debate

 The Pensions Minister was questioned over efforts to boost Pension Credit take up as well as the progress of the Auto-enrolment Extension Bill. He said Pension Credit inquiries had grown and that he was pushing hard for progress on the AE Extension Bill.

 Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis, Hargreaves Lansdown: “The triple lock has had a rollercoaster ride, delivering two of its highest increases ever in the past two years, after being controversially suspended during the pandemic. After a period of time when people’s finances have been torn to shreds by the cost-of-living crisis, the MPs were in no mood to oppose the 8.5% increase due to come into effect in April, but there was a sense that change is needed in how benefits are uprated.

 Nigel Mills MP questioned whether the September inflation figure needed to be used for an April uprating, or whether the process could be simplified so that a later figure could be used that would provide a more realistic picture in periods when inflation or wages are moving quickly. He pointed out that using a two- or three-year rolling average might prove more useful in delivering a smoothed figure. Such measures would surely go some way towards containing costs.

 Others pointed to the need for a more standardised approach to bring pensioners much needed certainty around what they get and when. Pensioner poverty was a key part of the debate with the recent Joseph Rowntree Poverty report showing over 2m pensioners are in poverty. Wendy Chamberlain MP added that given so many pensioners continue to go hungry, perhaps the discussion needs to move to how much the state pension needs to be, rather than how much to uprate it by.

 We’ve reached an important point in this debate. The triple lock has boosted state pensions, but the fact remains many pensioners remain in poverty while state pension costs spiral. A review of state pensions, and the triple lock’s role within it, is urgently needed to deliver a system that delivers certainty for pensioners now and in the future.”