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The new full state pension is set to rise by £460 next April, the latest wages data suggest.
Under the government’s triple-lock commitment to uprate pensions every year, the amount paid out to pensioners is calculated by the highest of earnings growth, inflation, or 2.5 percent—whichever is the highest figure.
The ONS wages figures imply that pensioners can see their full, flat-rate state pension go up to £11,962.60 a year from next April, a rise of £460. This applies to those who reached state pension age after April 2016.
For Britons, who reached the state pension age before that, the full old basic state pension is set to increase to £176.30 a week, a rise of £353.60 compared with now.
In the winter of 2023/2024 there were 10.8 million pensioners in 7.6 million households in England and Wales who received the winter fuel payment. According to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), 1.5 million individuals in 1.3 million households will receive it this winter.
Policymakers and campaigners have warned that slashing the allowance will affect the most vulnerable pensioners. Around five in six retirees living below the poverty line will miss out on help paying their winter fuel bills.
Morrissey also noted that the new annual pension is moving closer to the £12,570 personal tax allowance.
Pensioners on a lower income can access Pension Credit, which is separate from the state pension, to help with their living costs, such as housing, council tax and heating bills. The Treasury has estimated that over 800,000 pensioners are not claiming the benefit.
In August, the DWP announced a “Pension Credit awareness drive” to encourage eligible households not receiving the benefit to apply for it by Dec. 21. By doing so, more retirees can qualify for the winter fuel payment this year.
Critics of the cuts have questioned the government’s decision. The House of Lords Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee has said it is “unconvinced” by Labour’s reasons for the urgency of the decision and added that the policy is “being introduced at a pace that prevents appropriate scrutiny.”