Robert Jenrick, Reform UK's shadow Treasury spokesman, has warned that Andy Burnham's decision to scrap the pension triple lock is only the beginning, with the Prime Minister potentially needing billions more in taxes to fund his social care plans.
Writing for Express readers, Jenrick said the reasons given for cutting the triple lock are a "load of rubbish," arguing that pensioners are being unfairly targeted while other areas of spending remain untouched.
Pensioners "first to make sacrifices"
Jenrick criticised Burnham for not addressing the "ballooning benefits bill," cutting foreign aid to rich countries, or stopping "mad net zero subsidies," instead choosing to "pick on pensioners" receiving £240 a week on the state pension.
He said the claim that such pensioners are "bankrupting the country" is "everything that's wrong with Westminster," adding that "they just don't get it."
£17bn tax gap and death tax fears
Jenrick said Burnham's justification for the cut — funding a new social care system — was dismissed even by Paul Johnson, the anti-triple lock former head of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, who called it "for the birds."
He said hitting pensioners will only get the Prime Minister 20% of what he needs, meaning £17bn more in taxes is required — a figure that "went entirely unmentioned." Jenrick noted that £17bn is roughly the same amount that would be raised by a 10% death tax on every person who dies, which he called a "double whammy on pensioners."
Reform's alternative plan
Jenrick said Reform UK "have the backs of Express readers and will fight this all the way," claiming the party could save £80bn every year by cutting waste — 13 times as much as abolishing the triple lock saves.
He said Reform would use some of those savings to keep the triple lock and increase the tax-free Personal Allowance to £15,000, which would help "almost everyone in Britain — workers and pensioners alike" and keep the state pension out of income tax altogether.
Jenrick acknowledged that "difficult choices must be made" and that no one is satisfied with the present state of the social care system. But he argued that Britain's state pension remains "one of the lowest in the developed world," even after 15 years of the triple lock, and that £240 a week "does not fund a luxurious existence."
He concluded that Reform will "do the opposite of Andy Burnham and make the choices that put the British people first," promising, "We'll be on your side instead."
