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Tue, 29 Sep 2026

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 Faisal Islam: Triple lock move is significant, but it's a gamble

I had expected him to try to forge a political consensus on this thorny issue at this stage, but he has gone further than that.

* Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced plans to end the triple lock on state pensions in 2030 and replace it with an "adjusted triple lock" that will tie pension rises to the rate of inflation or 2.5%, whichever is higher.
* The link to rises in yearly average earnings, which sets the current triple lock mechanism, will be removed from annual calculations and instead reflected over time.
* The state pension will still increase every year, but its growth will be slower than under the current system.
* The plan aims to save "many billions" of pounds in the coming decades by reducing the cost of the triple lock, which is estimated to have saved around £9bn annually since 2011 if it had been in place from 2011.
* The decision has been described as a "tough decision" and may receive a positive response from bond markets, which have historically viewed UK politics as unable to take long-term debates seriously.