Burnham Unveils Plan to Overhaul Pension Triple Lock in 2030 to Bankroll National Care Service

Andy Burnham has used his first Labour Party conference speech as prime minister to announce a major reform of the state pension triple lock, pledging to end the existing formula from 2030 as part of a wider plan to fund a new national care service in England.

Addressing a packed conference hall in Liverpool, Burnham said the change would generate "significant savings" that would be directed towards building up social care provision. Under his proposal, the state pension would continue to rise each year by at least inflation or 2.5%, but the automatic annual link to average earnings growth would be removed.

The triple lock, introduced in 2010 by the coalition government, currently guarantees that state pension rates increase every April by whichever is highest: inflation, average earnings growth, or 2.5%. Burnham confirmed the existing arrangement would remain in place until 2030, at which point he intends to "adjust it".

He told delegates: "The state pension will continue to rise every year at least by prices or 2.5%. And it will hold its value relative to earnings over time so that pensioners will always share in the rising prosperity of the nation. But this change will generate significant savings which we will use to build up our national care service."

The prime minister argued that older people reliant solely on the state pension, or with only marginally more, currently find themselves contributing to care costs from a modest income. He said his plan would put an end to that situation.

Officials have estimated the reform could save approximately £15bn annually by 2040. However, Jonathan Cribb, deputy director at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, offered a more cautious assessment, noting that savings "are likely to be relatively small in the first few years, but rise substantially over time". He also warned: "We should not expect this reform to save enough that it could fund universal social care in the next parliament."

Burnham acknowledged that the change could carry electoral consequences, telling conference that he may "pay a political price" for pursuing the reform. Nevertheless, he insisted that "someone has to go through the pain barrier and rip the plaster off."

The announcement provoked immediate criticism from opposition parties. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said "more tax rises are inevitable" under Labour's proposals. Reform UK's Nigel Farage accused the prime minister of "launching an offensive against our elderly". Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said families "cannot wait until after another election and it can't be funded from the pockets of our poorest pensioners".

Sharon Graham, general secretary of the Unite union, told the BBC that the government should have considered alternative revenue sources, such as a wealth tax, rather than altering the triple lock.

The social care plan itself is being developed to be put before voters at the next general election, expected in 2029. Burnham said it would be "fully funded and not through borrowing". He described a national care service as a "landmark" policy that would be "as significant as the creation of the NHS itself and utterly essential to securing its future".

Burnham drew on personal experience to explain his long-standing commitment to care reform, recounting how his grandmother Kitty's engagement ring was "ripped from her finger and stolen in a care home". The speech, which lasted more than an hour, saw Burnham at times pause and appear to hold back tears as he referenced his father, Roy, who died earlier this month.

Arriving on stage to "All Together Now" by Liverpool band The Farm, Burnham adopted the song's title as a theme for his address. He said he wanted to "draw a line on a decade of division" and to "stop doomscrolling on posts running Britain down". He told conference he wanted to "put the country on a new path", recalling his family's "working-class aspiration" and stating that the government wanted to "unlock" similar opportunities for others.

Beyond pensions and social care, Burnham outlined plans to repeal what he described as "Margaret Thatcher's ideological ban on public ownership of water companies". He said legislation would be brought before Parliament, starting a "10-year journey to a very different water system", including new powers for mayors to hold companies to account. He also said it would become easier for councils to acquire private rented homes in poor condition if landlords fail to act after receiving warnings, with the government prepared to change the law "if necessary".

On Brexit, Burnham told delegates that "Brexit has done more harm than good". He also signalled support for potentially reforming the UK's electoral system and for greater public control over housing, water and energy services.

The scale of the proposals reflects Burnham's ambition to reshape the country's social contract, but the pension reform in particular is likely to dominate political debate in the coming months. While the government argues the savings are necessary to establish a sustainable care system, critics question whether the sums will be sufficient and whether pensioners on low incomes will ultimately bear the cost of a broader transformation.