Brits may have to work into their 70s 'unless pension triple lock is reformed'

People may have to 'work into their seventies' unless the pension triple lock is reformed, the work and pensions secretary has suggested. Pat McFadden defended Labour's controversial plan to scrap the existing triple lock and replace it with a cheaper arrangement. He said the changes would save £50billion a year by the middle of the century, putting the state pension on a 'more sustainable footing' and freeing up cash to pay for Andy Burnham 's new National Care Service. And he rounded on opponents of the changes, suggesting they would have to find other ways to curb the cost of the state pension in an ageing society. 'Will it be, as when the Tories were in government before, through faster and faster rises in the state pension age, asking people to work into their 70s before they even get a pension at all?' he said. Shadow work and pensions secretary Helen Whately said Labour's failure to get a grip of the ballooning working age benefits bill was 'putting the state pension in jeopardy'. She told MPs: 'If the Prime Minister wants to make savings, he should start with working-age welfare. 'This is Labour doing what Labour does best-dodging the tough choices, ducking a fight with its welfare-loving Back Benchers, leaving a black hole in its fiscal plans and hammering those who have worked and paid into the system to give more handouts to "Benefits Street". I am appalled, but frankly I am not surprised.' Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden has suggested Britons may have to work into their seventies unless the triple lock is reformed Mr McFadden also faced a backlash from some Labour MPs, who fear the plans risk repeating the disaster of the party's attempt to scrap the winter fuel payment. Brian Leishman, MP for Alloa and Grangemouth, said ministers should focus on taxing the wealth of 'multimillionaires and billionaires'. 'There are two million pensioners in the UK living in poverty, and that is even with the triple lock,' he said. 'Why will the Government not tax the wealthiest to pay for social care instead?' Fellow Labour MP Rachael Maskell said she already had 'deep concern about the levels of pensioner poverty, with 1.7 million pensioners making difficult choices.' The triple lock has protected the value of the state pension for years. The mechanism guarantees that the state pension rises each year in line with earnings, inflation or 2.5 per cent, whichever is highest. Under the new plans, the direct link with earnings will be lost, leaving the pension rising by either inflation or 2.5 per cent. Government sources said a separate mechanism would ensure the pension does not fall below 30 per cent of average earnings over time. Labour MP Neil Duncan-Jordan said the new system meant that 'over time, the state pension will be lower than under the current system'. He added: 'Given that future generations will increasingly rely on the state pension, it seems like we are going in the wrong direction.'