Forget £11,500. Most state pensioners to get less than £9,000 under triple lock

Pensioners are set for ‘significant’ pay rise as the state pension may increase by 8.5 percent next April, boosting the full new state pension to more than £220 a week . That’s based on average earnings between May and July, 2023, which is used as part of triple lock calculations. However, while younger pensioners are on course for a £900 pay rise, older ones will get less than £700. That’s because there are two state pensions, the basic state pension, paid to those who retired before April 6, 2016, and the new state pension paid thereafter. Both rise each year by the same percentage, but the basic state pension starts from a lower base, so the annual increase is always smaller. Now let’s assume the state pension does rise by 8.5 percent next April (there’s a chance the government will pull a fast one so it doesn’t) . In that case, the full new state pension will increase by £902.20 a year, lifting it from £10,600.20 a year to £11,502.40. By contrast, the full basic state pension would only increase by £691.60 a year, from today’s £8,122.40 to £8,814. The discrepancy causes fury among many older pensioners, who see headlines suggesting they will get far more pension than they actually will. They’re in the majority, too. Just 3.2million get the new state pension, while almost three times as many, 9.5million, get the basic state pension. Many feel poorly treated as a result, although the overall picture is complicated. Many on the basic state pension get additional state pension, but not everyone (Image: Getty) Many basic state pensioners also get additional state pension on top, either the state earnings-related pension scheme (Serps) or state second pension (S2P). They may get more total pension as a result, particularly men who worked all their lives in the UK. However, many get much less, primarily women who gave up work to raise children or care for loved ones, and those who suffered long spells of ill health. Another issue is that S2P and Serps do not benefit from triple lock protection, but are increased by inflation every year, based on September’s figure. Inflation is expected to be around seven percent in September, so that element of the pension looks set to increase by a smaller amount The new state pension was designed to help women who got less under the basic state pension, and in that respect it has had some success. However, many  older women on the basic state pension often face extreme hardship . They will be no doubt be furious to see headlines suggesting they will get far more in April than they receive in practice.  READ MORE:  Sunak’s plan to save £600m condemned as ‘betrayal’ of pledge to pensioners The underlying problem is that neither the basic or new state pension is enough to live on comfortably, even with the triple lock. Things will get even worse if the mechanism is scrapped altogether, amid growing claims that it is unsustainable . Yesterday we learned that  even Labour is refusing to guarantee the triple lock . The new state pension was designed to bring clarity, but running two different systems has also generated plenty of confusion and resentment. When I’ve spoken to the DWP about this in the past, it pointed out that it’s already spending more than £110billion a year on the state pension, while the current full basic state pension is £3,050 higher than in 2010. It also said that the vast majority of basic state pensioners get additional occupational or private pension, if they were contracted out, or the additional state pension. “In many cases, they will get a combination of the two.’ Under the new state pension, men and women should get similar amounts by the early 2040s, the DWP noted. That will be little consolation to those who feel abandoned today. Especially as the gap between the two pensions will only widen over time. It’s baked into the system.