Make the State Pension equal to Minimum Wage (40hr/wk 23+) to all from age 60

The State Pension is far too low. The Government must increase the basic State Pension to £21,673.60 a year (£416.80 pw) and extend this to everyone aged 60 or over. This should lift thousands out of poverty, give our elderly folk more power to survive, and help grow the real economy, bottom up.

From April 2023 someone aged 23 or over working 40 hours a week would be entitled to a minimum of £416.80 a week.

A State Pension Age of 60 for all, based on 40 hours a week at the minimum wage, reflects that there has been a decline in improvements in life expectancy, and that health often deteriorates long before people are able to claim State Pension currently.

Today's young are tomorrows old, so removing the need for the means-tested Pension Credit, that discourages savers, is defending the future of all, and investing directly into the real economy via a much higher State Pension, universally paid.

There has been no policy change since this topic was debated on 12 December 2022 (https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/617603) and the e-petition response on 7 February 2023 (Increase State Pensions to £416.80 per week & lower Retirement Age to 60 for All - Petitions (parliament.uk)) We are committed to ensuring economic security for people at every stage of their life, including when they reach retirement. 

This year, the Government will spend over £151 billion directly on the State Pension and benefits for pensioners in Great Britain. In April, the State Pension saw its biggest ever rise, increasing by 10.1%. The full yearly rate of the new State Pension is now over £10,600 per year. In addition, the full yearly amount of the basic State Pension is over £3,050 higher, in cash terms, than in 2010. That’s £790 more than if it had been uprated by earnings and £945 more than if it had been uprated by inflation (since 2010).

We also provide additional support to older people, which includes the provision of free bus passes, free prescriptions, Winter Fuel Payments, and Cold Weather Payments. The Government is committed to alleviating pensioner poverty. There are 200,000 fewer pensioners in absolute poverty (both before and after housing costs) than in 2009/10.

The Government has also acted to support pensioners with rising living costs. This includes a £650 Cost of Living Payment to more than 8 million low-income households on qualifying means-tested benefits, including Pension Credit, with separate one-off payments of £300 to pensioner households (through and as an addition to the Winter Fuel Payment) and £150 to individuals receiving extra costs disability benefits.