Overview

• The state pension age will move from 66 to 67 in phased steps between April 2026 and April 2028 for people born between 6 March 1961 and 5 April 1977.
• Because of cohort phasing, some claimants will not qualify on their 66th birthday and may wait up to five months for payments to start, according to former pensions minister Sir Steve Webb.
• The DWP says it has no plans to lower eligibility to 60 or to peg payments to 48 hours at the National Living Wage.
• An official petition calling for those changes has passed 16,000 signatures but has not resulted in a policy shift.
• The department reiterates its commitment to the Triple Lock during this Parliament, with state pension spending forecast to be about £31 billion a year higher by its end than in 2024/25.