Andy Burnham’s vow to keep the triple lock has not put off Labour MPs who want the party to ditch the current state pension increase mechanism.
The man hoping to replace Sir Keir Starmer at No 10 told The i Paper that it would be “very damaging” to scrap the party’s manifesto promise to maintain the triple lock.
However, some frustrated Labour backbenchers insist the policy is “unaffordable” – however unpopular ending it would be with pensioners.
One Labour MP said there was too much fear of losing older voters, telling The i Paper: “We don’t need to be so afraid.”
Burnham makes vow ahead of vital by-election
The triple lock policy states that the state pension rises every year in line with inflation, average earnings growth or 2.5 per cent – whichever is highest.
Fighting to keep Reform UK at bay at Thursday’s crunch by-election in Makerfield, Burnham has said Labour must honour its manifesto pledge to keep the lock for the rest of the current Parliament.
In an exclusive interview with The i Paper, the Mayor of Greater Manchester warned that to “tear up the manifesto commitments on the triple lock” would be “very damaging”.
Burnham faces a tough task to defeat Reform in Makerfield (Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty)It defies a growing chorus of voices – including from former prime minister Sir Tony Blair and Labour’s cost of living tsar and Iceland boss Lord Richard Walker – who say it is no longer “affordable”.
Labour MPs who agree with Blair are frustrated that comments by Burnham could push a triple lock replacement further into the distance.
However, they still hope there is growing momentum behind calls to start to reform the state pension beyond the general election expected in 2028 or 2029.
‘There is fear of losing older voters’
“[Burnham] says that now, but he could shift in future,” one Labour MP said. “To be fair he has a by-election to win – so I don’t blame him for saying it.
“There’s nothing to stop us saying: ‘We’re protecting it in this Parliament, but we’ve commissioned a big study to look at it for the next Parliament and the future’.”
“There is fear of losing older voters. We don’t need to be so afraid. It’s the right thing to do,” they added.
“You can try to make the argument and say: ‘This is how we’ll support you if you’re [a pensioner] in poverty in a way that’s affordable and sustainable’. Pretending it’s not a problem isn’t an option forever.”
One Labour MP, also keen to replace the triple lock, said they understood why it was politically necessary for Burnham to uphold the 2024 pledge. “It was a manifesto commitment, so it should be protected.”
But the MP still hopes there can be a debate about dropping the triple lock commitment in the next Labour general election manifesto.
They want a discussion about finding a cheaper mechanism to increase the state pension. “We have to win the argument on scrapping it [the triple lock] and outline the benefits for all.”
Asked about the idea of losing pensioner votes, the MP added: “It’s a risk – it’s why politicians won’t do it.”
Breaking pledge would be ‘politically disastrous’
Another Labour MP, who is keen to reform the triple lock, said it was “very sensible” for Burnham to uphold the 2024 commitment.
Breaking it now “after the winter fuel debacle would be politically disastrous”, they said – referring to the botched attempt to scrap pensioners’ universal winter fuel payments.
The figure still hopes for a debate on the triple lock, but accepts that changing the mechanism may be a gradual process.
“Triple lock reform – it’s not abolition as it might need to stay for low-income pensioners – is a long-term project.”
The Labour Growth Group (LGG), a centrist group of MPs, recently said money going to the triple lock could be better used on working-age people – describing it as a matter of “intergenerational fairness”.
Chris Curtis, co-chair of the LGG, has said the triple lock “inevitably cannot last forever”. His backbench colleague Graeme Downie said older people should “continue to be supported” – but that Labour must be “unashamed about saying we are about the next generation”.
Burnham faces calls to keep triple lock into 2030s
However, former pensions minister Steve Webb has argued there is a good case for keeping the triple lock for “at least another couple of Parliaments”.
The former Lib Dem minister previously said it was brought in to “undo 30 years of damage” to the state pension after it fell far behind wage increases.
Ditching the guarantee would be highly politically risky, Webb also warned. “There aren’t many votes in taking money away from pensions and spending on young people.”
Left-wing Labour MPs backing Burnham oppose any move to abandon the triple lock. Kim Johnson, the MP for Liverpool Riverside, said many old voters already felt “abandoned” by the winter fuel fiasco.
Burnham’s commitment was “very welcome”, said Dennis Reed, director of the Silver Voices pensioner campaign group.
“We would like him to commit to protecting it throughout the next Parliament,” added Reed, who said he was “distressed” by the recent flurry of calls to scrap the triple lock.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) recently proposed that once the state pension has hit a certain percentage of average earnings, the triple lock should be abandoned and state pension increases kept in line with average earnings.
A Government spokesperson said: “Supporting pensioners is a priority and we have committed to the triple lock for the rest of this Parliament.”
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