State pensioners issued NEW update over Labour 'scrapping' Triple Lock

Chancellor has addressed the prospect of changing the Triple Lock ahead of the conference in the North West of England this week.

Rachel Reeves has issued an update over potentially scrapping the Triple Lock. The Labour Party Chancellor has addressed the prospect of changing the Triple Lock ahead of the conference in the North West of England this week.

Ms Reeves said: "But, also, we're committed to keeping the triple lock, not just for one year, but for the whole of this parliament. Already, the triple lock means that the pension this year is worth £900 more than a year ago, I'll announce at the Budget probably another increase of around £460 next April, and over the course of this parliament, the new state pension is likely to rise by £1,700.

"So, we are protecting pension incomes through the triple lock, which means that they will go up by the highest of inflation, 2.5% or earnings." She told Times Radio: "There's not going to be austerity under Labour. "Not only did it do huge damage to our public services, but it also did huge damage to our economy, because it choked off the investment that is needed to grow the economy.

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"Now, the commitment that I will make for this Budget is that it will be about protecting living standards, fixing the National Health Service, and then, crucially, about rebuilding Britain. Because we can't keep cutting investment spending, which is what the previous Conservative government did, and that chokes off the private investment that is necessary to grow our economy.

"We need that infrastructure, the housing, the energy infrastructure, the digital infrastructure, the research labs. I want them here in Britain, there's a global race on for some of the jobs and industries of the future, whether it's in life sciences, low carbon energy or tech."

There were "loads of reasons to be optimistic" but "investment doesn't come by chance", Ms Reeves said. "We're going to back the builders, not the blockers, and bring that investment back to Britain," she added.