Oral Answers to Questions

Susan Murray Excerpts

Monday 16th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Liz Kendall]

I absolutely join in the hon. Gentleman’s comments. It was a great joy to see that victory at the weekend. We want to see Access to Work working better. We want to get the backlogs down, and for that support to be available to more people.

Labour Members believe that disabled people have the same rights as anyone else to work, socialise and take part in life. That is what we are determined to achieve, not just through the Department for Work and Pensions, but through every part of Government. The hon. Gentleman will know that we recently announced lead Ministers for disability in every Department. That shows how important we take this issue to be.

[Susan Murray (Mid Dunbartonshire) (LD)]

3. What assessment she has made of the potential impact of trends in inflation on pensioners’ living standards.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Emma Reynolds)]

Due to the Government’s steadfast commitment to the triple lock, pensioners will see an above-inflation increase of 4.1% in their state pension next year, which means that they will be up to £470 better off—and, over the course of this Parliament, over £1,900 better off.

[Susan Murray]

I thank the Minister for the insight. In Mid Dunbartonshire, nearly a quarter of my constituents are of pension age. Many have placed their hard-earned income into private schemes, yet despite their financial planning, they face the harsh reality that inflation is outstripping the modest yearly increase to their pension, eroding the value of their lifetime of saving. What steps will she take to prevent the erosion in value of private pensions, and to mitigate the problem of the growth in the value of pension funds not being passed on to pension holders?