Andy Burnham's triple-lock pension gamble risks repeat of Keir Starmer's first big mistake
At just over £12,500, the UK pays its pensioners far less than many countries in Europe
Andy Burnham’s at times faltering delivery when speaking in public can make you fear his train of thought is about to desert him, but the relative lack of polish also helps convey an impression of honesty. In cynical political times, that is a useful quality.
There was certainly no questioning the genuineness of his emotion when talking about his late father, Roy, who died earlier this month, during his Labour party conference speech yesterday.
“The United Kingdom my dad represented is the one I believe in,” he said, revealing that John Swinney had claimed he would be the last Prime Minister of the UK on the day his father died. Burnham stressed he did not blame the First Minister, who he believed was unaware of what had happened, but added that he wanted to let people know how it had made him feel – “utterly determined to prove him wrong”.
National Care Service plan
Burnham said the UK he believed in was “a union of nations that gave trade unions and the cooperative movement to the world, the National Health Service, a country that stood up to fascism, a country of solidarity, not separation... We will always be stronger facing a changing world together, rather than separating.”
Many unionists will have been heartened by this impassioned championing of the UK, given their cause is so often reduced to a matter of brass tacks in contrast to the romantic appeals of nationalism.
The speech will also have pleased Labour left-wingers, to a degree at least, with its talk of overturning Margaret Thatcher’s reforms to give greater public control over housing, water and energy, and the creation of a National Care Service, a pledge the SNP may fear given their failed attempt to introduce one.
UK pension low relative to other countries
However, Burnham’s choice of how to pay for this new service – by scrapping the ‘triple-lock’ state pension guarantee from 2030 – may well see him come under attack from both the left and the right. As seen during Keir Starmer’s ill-fated attempt to means-test winter fuel payments for pensioners, this can be a very difficult position to be in.
The triple lock was introduced by the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition at the height of government ‘austerity’ policies following the 2008 financial crash. It means the state pension will always rise by the highest of the inflation rate, growth in average earnings, or 2.5 per cent.
This guarantees a decent increase every year. However, at just over £12,500, the UK still pays its pensioners far less than many countries in Europe. For example, Iceland’s annual state pension was worth more than £30,000 last year, in Denmark and Norway, it was more than £25,000, while Ireland managed to find over £18,000.
It’s unclear why Burnham chose to announce this now, but perhaps he hopes voters will get used to the idea over the next four years and be persuaded that a National Care Service is worth the pain.
Another bad start?
Starmer tried to convince people of the need to means-test winter fuel payments, but it ended up being a political mistake that got his new government off to a bad start which then proceeded to get worse.
Pensioners are a significant constituency who vote in large numbers and, for all the talk of inter-generational conflict, they also have children and grandchildren who may be angered if their lives are made harder.
Burnham is a more open and better politician than Starmer, so perhaps he will be able to satisfy the public that there really is a need for smaller rises in the state pension. But, if he’s to pull it off, he is going to need every ounce of his political nous.
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.