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To: Rishi Sunak, UK Prime Minister

Defend the Triple Lock

Triple lock was reinstated!

The government must reinstate the state pension triple lock, which rules that the state pension must rise in line with whichever is highest of inflation, average earnings or 2.5%.

There are currently 2.8 million older households in fuel poverty, including 1.3 million living on lower incomes as at October 2022.

Reinstating the triple lock is crucial for protecting the wellbeing of Unite the Union's retired members and older people more generally.

Why is this important?

On 17 November, the government will announce in its autumn statement whether it will reinstate the state pension triple lock for 2023.

The triple lock rules that the state pension must rise in line with whichever is highest of inflation, average earnings or 2.5%. The Prime Minister has previously refused to commit to reinstating the triple lock.

For 2022, the triple lock was suspended meaning that the state pension rise of 3.1% in April was quickly overtaken by inflation which at that point was already at 11%.

The cost of living crisis is really a cost of greed crisis. Profiteering energy companies are driving up energy bills and driving more people into poverty. Older people spend a larger proportion of their fixed income on energy bills, meaning more of Unite's retired members will be forced into an impossible choice - between heating or eating.

We are calling on the Prime Minister to do the right thing by our retired members and reinstate the triple lock.

*** Join Unite in the fight for dignity in retirement, through Retired Members Plus membership. Join here: https://join.unitetheunion.org/ ***

*** You can also write to your MP using the National Pensioner Convention's (NPC) template letter, here: https://www.npcuk.org/post/write-to-your-mp-to-save-the-triple-lock ***

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Updates

2022-11-18 11:49:32 +0000

Petition is successful with 20,074 signatures

2022-11-16 23:17:09 +0000

20,000 signatures reached

2022-11-16 13:52:44 +0000

“The UK has one of the lowest state pensions in the entire developed world, and at the same time we are one of the wealthiest nations — we can absolutely afford to look after our elderly.”

Read the UNITElive article about the campaign to defend the triple lock, including interviews with Monica and Irene for the Unite Retired Members' Committee: https://unitelive.org/protect-triple-lock-call/

2022-11-11 15:02:23 +0000

10,000 signatures reached

2022-11-10 15:54:30 +0000

5,000 signatures reached

2022-11-10 13:18:55 +0000

1,000 signatures reached

2022-11-10 13:10:48 +0000

500 signatures reached

2022-11-10 13:06:28 +0000

100 signatures reached

2022-11-10 13:05:57 +0000

50 signatures reached

2022-11-10 13:05:34 +0000

25 signatures reached

2022-11-10 13:05:16 +0000

10 signatures reached