The Chancellor Rishi Sunak made his Spring Statement last week, but there was a conspicuous absence of any reference to pensioners. Dennis Reed, director of Silver Voices, spoke exclusively to Express.co.uk to share his concerns over the issues pensioners are currently facing.
The decision to suspend the triple lock policy, thereby reducing the increase pensioners receive to their state pension, has been a source of much controversy as many retirees face a challenge to make ends meet.
The Chancellor has confirmed it will return next year, but by suspending the policy for the 2022/23 tax year, pensioners saw their state pension increase cut down from more than eight percent to just 3.1 percent.
This issue has been exacerbated by staggering levels of inflation, pushing up the cost of living.
Mr Reed criticised Mr Sunak for a lack of support for pensioners announced during his Spring Statement.
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He pleaded for the Government to go further to support pensioners who are currently struggling during the cost of living crisis.
Mr Reed continued: “We completely reject what he’s done so far, for older people, and we want a lot more from the Government, we want a lot more support.
“We’re continuing to argue for a £500, one off addition to the basic state pension. It’s that sort of thing that has to be done to meet the scale of the problem.”
Mr Reed also believes the rate at which benefits are paid needs to be reviewed to better reflect the current financial landscape, and also warned the Government they could face a backlash in the polls if they do not provide more support.
He said: “Benefits like pension credit, they’re only going up 3.1 percent, so benefits should also reflect inflation as well, if we’re going to be serious about meeting the cost of living challenge.”
“The Chancellor is used to basking in the sunshine of acclaim for what he’s done during the pandemic. His current package has gone down like a lead balloon.
“If they don’t offer more, then I think there’s going to be an appropriate response at the polls in the local elections to give the Government fair warning that they’re going downhill in terms of the older electorate.”
With inflation soaring to 6.2 percent and the state pension rising by just 3.1 percent on April 11, 2022, Mr Reed believes the living standards of pensioners could continue to be hit.
He said: “There’s been various Government comments, which say: ‘We have never paid pensioners more’. If you look at inflation increases which have occurred, of course, they’ve never paid pensioners more, but prices have never been more either.
“3.1 percent is exactly half of the 6.2 percent inflation rate, but that inflation rate is going to go up, and some of the actual services and essentials, which pensioners rely more on than anybody else, like heating and food, they’re already going up 10 percent or more, as we see from our shopping baskets every week.
“3.1 percent is a massive cut. We are really going back to the situation where there will be hundreds of thousands more older people who are below the poverty line, not just relative poverty, but genuine poverty.
“There’s complete desperation out there as well as fury at the lack of support so far from the Government.”
