Triple lock: Conservatives look set to have raided pensioners in Rochester and Strood out of a total of £10,201,977 in just three years

The Conservative government is reportedly set to break the triple lock once more by not uprating fully in line with earnings. Instead they will exclude bonuses meaning that pensioners will receive a 7.8% rise in the state pension, but not the 8.5% the triple lock guaranteed them.

Liberal Democrat analysis has estimated that this would amount to a total of a £1,115,423 cut for Rochester and Strood's pensioners. It comes on top of an even bigger hit that pensioners suffered in 2022 when the government did not uprate pensions in line with earnings as the triple lock prescribes. Instead, they uprated by a lower measure, Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation.

The effect of both cuts since 2022 could result in an eye-watering hit for Rochester and Strood's pensioners of a total of £10,201,977 over three years. It comes as the Liberal Democrats have been the only major party to commit to the triple lock in full ahead of the next General Election.

Alan Wells, Medway Liberal Democrat spokesperson said: “To row back on the triple lock would be another in a long list of callous Conservative party broken promises. Pensioners in Medway need to be rewarded for their decades of contributing to our society, not be forced to suffer this Conservative government turning their back on them once again, right in the midst of a cost of living crisis.

These figures expose the government's cost of living package for pensioners. In breaking their manifesto promise and failing to protect the state pension, the Conservatives have plunged the older people in Rochester and Strood into the depths of a cost of living crisis. Pensioners are facing during this cold and bitter winter and are among the most vulnerable in Medway. This out of touch government has left them out in the cold, with a hole in their pocket and even harsher days ahead.

Many pensioners in Medway are already worried sick about how to pay the bills, as the cost of heating and eating goes through the roof. Now the refusal of both the Conservatives and Labour to commit to protecting pensions in future is causing even more anxiety for those struggling to get by.

The Liberal Democrats are proud that we brought in the triple lock, lifting thousands of pensioners out of poverty. We are committed to keeping the triple lock in place, giving people the security of knowing it will be there to support them in future years.

Pensioners in Medway should not be made to pay the price for years of economic chaos under the Conservatives Party

The triple lock must be maintained and Medway's pensioners must be given the money that they deserve after their years of service. Instead, this out of touch Prime Minister looks set to punish them for his own party crashing the economy."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

Liberal Democrat analysis of the cost to pensioners of the Conservatives breaking the triple-lock can be found here.