Oral Answers to Questions

Ben Howlett Excerpts

Monday 1st February 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr Vara]

The general trend for longevity is increasing. The new state pension will ensure that 650,000 women will receive £8 extra a week. Women live longer and, in the longer run, they will benefit a lot more.

[Ben Howlett (Bath) (Con)]

Although I appreciate that emotions are high on both sides, it is important to ask why, in 13 years of government, the Labour party did nothing to address the issue, especially since they knew that women were living longer. Does the Minister agree that a triple-lock single flat-rate pension would be much fairer to women than the old system?

[Mr Vara]

Absolutely. Such a pension will be much fairer. When such passionate comments come up at oral questions and in the various debates we are having on this issue, it is worth remembering that not one party—neither the Scottish National party nor the Labour party—put such a measure in its manifesto. That is because simply to reverse the 2011 measures would cost over £30 billion, and it would cost countless billions more to reverse the change made in 1995. Those parties should be mindful of the fact that the issue was in not in either of their manifestos.