A pensioner has criticised Chancellor Rachel Reeves for “rubbing our noses in it” during a recent public appearance to promote housing initiatives.
GB News viewer Jo Letchford expressed her frustration at seeing Reeves standing in front of “massive five to six bedroom houses” while discussing economic forecasts.
Her comments came as she discussed the upcoming state pension increase set for April 2025, which will see payments rise to nearly £12,000 annually.
The 4.1 per cent increase in state pensions will take effect from April 6, 2025, after Chancellor Rachel Reeves made no changes to the triple lock during her recent spring statement.
Jo Letchford said that she was “rubbing it in out faces”
GB NEWS
Letchford said: “I’ve got to say this before I say anything about the money.
“I watched Rachel Reeves this morning and it’s so sad, really, because all she quotes is the Office for Budget and Responsibility (OBR), she is not really working the money out herself.
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“But this morning she just says, ‘the OBR says we’re going to be £500 better off’. The laugh of it was, she’s obviously on a building site to promote Angela Rayner’s so-called building revolution.
“Standing in front of two massive five to six bedroom houses being built as we speak. What does that say to young kids that are trying to get on the housing ladder? Shouldn’t she be in front of a row of terraced houses like we all started?
“I mean, the girl should have looked around and thought, ‘oh, actually, I won’t stand here’, because it’s just rubbing our noses in it, isn’t it?”
“But anyway, going on to the pension, I used to do payroll, I’ve looked it up today that the state pension will be going up in April, it will be nearly 12 grand. I don’t get that because I’m too old. I just get just over nine grand like most pensioners on the old state pension.”
This refers to the two-tier pension system where older retirees receive the basic state pension, while those who reached pension age after April 2016 qualify for the higher new state pension.
The difference means many older pensioners receive significantly less despite having paid into the system for decades.
While pensioners welcome the upcoming increase, experts warn of a looming “tax cliff edge” in just two years’ time.
According to forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility, the state pension is predicted to rise by 4.6 per cent next April to £12,569.85.
The state pension is set to rise in April
PA
A further 2.5 per cent increase in April 2027 would push it to £12,885.50, exceeding the tax-free personal allowance by £315.50.
This would create a bizarre situation where pensioners would need to return some of their payment directly to HMRC.
Based on the current 20 per cent income tax rate, this would mean handing back approximately £63 to the taxman.
