economy
State pension triple lock declared 'unsustainable' as calls to axe 'unaffordable' payment hikes grow
Thanks to the triple lock, state pension payment rates are guaranteed to rise by at least 2.5 per cent each year
TL;DR
- Pensioner poverty has halved in the past three decades, dropping from 28% to 14%.
- The triple lock guarantees an annual increase in state pension payments by the highest of inflation, average wage growth, or 2.5%.
- Poverty among working-age adults and children has remained relatively static.
- A significant portion of the public misunderstands how the state pension is funded and the proportion of the welfare budget it consumes.
- The state pension and associated benefits account for approximately 55% of the total welfare budget, costing around £178 billion annually.
- Calls are being made to overhaul or abandon the triple lock due to its 'unsustainable' and 'unaffordable' costs.