Pensions Triple Lock

Jim Dickson Excerpts

Tuesday 13th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Pat McFadden]

My hon. Friend probably heard from a great many Tories who agree that change is needed. Perhaps he even heard from the Leader of the Opposition’s Parliamentary Private Secretaries, who have both called for change in the system, to add to the tally on the file beside my porridge. This is a new settlement for pensioners, as I have said. It still ensures a rising state pension every year, but it enables us also to face up to the long-term issue of social care.

[Jim Dickson (Dartford) (Lab)]

I thank the Secretary of State very much for confirming that the state pension will continue to rise and match earnings into the future. That is very important for reassuring pensioners in my Dartford constituency. Does he agree that pensioners across the whole country, including some of us who are soon to be pensioners, will be better off with a new national care service? I very much hope that it will not only provide free personal care but cap lifetime costs and improve the pay and conditions of those who work so hard in the care system, and that as a result, we will all be better off and adults can live a dignified life into the future.

[Pat McFadden]

My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the social care workforce. It has been undervalued over the years. The jobs that these people do are incredibly important to the people they look after, and we are not waiting until April 2030 before addressing some of those concerns and putting forward a better deal for the social care workforce.