Tory peer calls on Theresa May to ditch ‘unsustainable’ annual 2.5 per cent increase on state pensions
The Tory grandee Ros Altmann said the current system 'makes no economic or social sense'
A TORY PEER has backed calls for Theresa May to ditch the Triple Lock on state pensions – branding it a “political tool”.
Ros Altmann, a Pensions Minister under David Cameron, said the cost of guaranteeing a minimum 2.5 per cent rise in the state pension each year was unsustainable.
And she said the Triple Lock was clobbering those in poorer areas with lower life expectancy - because the huge cost of the policy was forcing up the country’s retirement age.
She told the Sun: “Guaranteeing a 2.5 per cent increase makes no economic or social sense and it will end up costing billions.
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“It’s also a political construct that purports to offer great protection while increasingly disadvantaging the oldest and poorest pensioners.”
The blast came 24 hours after a Government backed review recommended the PM ditch the policy after the 2020 General Election because of cost.
Former CBI chief John Cridland said saving on state pension spending by 2066 would be 0.8 per cent of GDP by 2066 - £15 billion in today’s money.
Ros Altmann revealed she had urged former Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith and the Treasury to ditch the Triple Lock from 2020 when she served in Government.
She was sacked in Theresa May’s reshuffle last summer.
Mr Cridland was appointed by the Government to review the state pension.
The official retirement age is to rise slowly from 65 to 68 by 2046.
But Mr Cridland said this target should be brought forward to 2039 to ensure “intergenerational fairness”. A separate study by the Government Actuary said those in their 20s face having to work until their 70th birthday.
Ms Altmann called on the Government to allow a four year retirement window of 65-69 with “adjusted payments” – so those with lower life expectancy had early access to their pension pots.