Overview
- September inflation was confirmed at 3.8%, leaving 4.8% earnings growth as the triple lock benchmark for April 2026 uprating.
- The full new state pension is set to rise from £230.25 to about £241.30 a week, or £12,547.60 a year, with the full basic pension increasing to roughly £184.90 a week.
- Ministers have pledged to maintain the triple lock until at least 2029, with the exact uplift due to be confirmed at next month’s Budget.
- Full Fact found viral videos falsely claiming a 20% cut from April 2026 used likely inauthentic audio; TikTok said it banned more than a dozen accounts sharing them.
- The IFS says the triple lock has lifted payments by about £30 a week versus an earnings-only link and now costs roughly £12bn a year, recommending a move to a smoothed earnings link after the election.