Susanna Reid accused the prime minister of targeting pensioners.
Susanna Reid grills Andy Burnham on triple lock changes
Susanna Reid directly challenged Andy Burnham over his plans for pensioners following his first Labour Conference speech on Tuesday (September 29). Burnham confirmed that he plans to scrap the pensions triple lock from 2030 in a bid to help fund a new free social care service. During an interview with the prime minister, Reid highlighted the concerns of an 82-year-old woman named Hilary, who they had spoken to ahead of the interview.
Hilary had raised concerns about the rising cost of living, revealing that her energy bill is set to increase by £57 a month. “If I have to, I can have egg on toast and a cup of tea and I’ll survive. But I can’t survive without my heating,” she told Good Morning Britain. “What do you say to people like Hilary who are facing an unaffordable rise in their energy bills, other than I can’t fix it,” Reid asked.
Susanna Reid directly asked Andy Burnham why he is picking on pensioners (Image: X/SusannaReid)
“I don’t want to say that to her. That would be defeatist and wrong from somebody in my position,” the prime minister responded.
He was pressed on whether Hilary would ultimately be worse off under his plans, but Burnham avoided giving a direct answer.
Instead, he turned to explaining how the triple lock works, outlining its three components, inflation, earnings growth and the 2.5 percent minimum increase.
“You’ve taken out the wages link,” Reid declared, leading Burnham to hit back: “No, it’s not taken out completely. So it is an adjustment.”
The ITV presenter went on to boldly ask: “Why are you picking on pensioners, prime minister?”
She questioned whether it was his “winter fuel moment”, referring to when Keir Starmer scrapped the winter fuel payment months after coming into office in 2024.
Burnham gave his first Labour Conference speech on Tuesday (Image: Getty)
“I’m not! I think you’ve got it completely wrong, really, if you don’t mind me saying, to put it like that because I have put out today a vision for a National Care Service,” Burnham snapped back.
“There are pensioners out there who watch your programme who are paying for care costs from their basic state pension. Now, is that right or fair?”
He added: “We have to fix this system. What I’m saying about the triple lock enables better support, better care for people in their homes, not care charges.
“Please let me make that point that people need to see these things in the round. It’s a better deal for older people going forward.”