{"id":128552,"title":"State Pension to Rise to £12,547 a Year in April Under 4.8% Triple Lock Increase","publisher":"Share Talk","author":"sharetalk","published":"2025-10-25T13:39:06+00:00","modified":"2025-10-25T13:40:43+00:00","canonical_url":"https://www.share-talk.com/state-pension-to-rise-to-12547-a-year-in-april-under-4-8-triple-lock-increase-2/","markdown_url":"https://www.share-talk.com/state-pension-to-rise-to-12547-a-year-in-april-under-4-8-triple-lock-increase-2.md","json_url":"https://www.share-talk.com/state-pension-to-rise-to-12547-a-year-in-april-under-4-8-triple-lock-increase-2.json","category":"Technology","categories":["Technology","Technology, Media & Telecoms"],"tags":["Income Tax","Office for Budget Responsibility","personal allowance","State pension","UK state pension","Wage growth"],"featured_image":"https://i0.wp.com/www.share-talk.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Pound-scaled.webp?fit=1200%2C638&ssl=1","format":"news","language":"en-GB","content":"The **UK state pension** is set to **rise by 4.8% in April 2026**, taking the **full new state pension** to **£12,547.60 a year**, following the latest **“triple lock”** adjustment linked to **earnings growth**.\n\nThe increase, worth **£574.60 annually**, will lift weekly payments from **£230.25 to £241.30**. The boost follows data showing **average wage growth of 4.8%** between May and July — higher than the **3.8% consumer price inflation (CPI)** figure published for September, which determines the alternative metric in the triple lock calculation.\n\nHowever, the rise will also mean an estimated **200,000 more pensioners** will be drawn into **income tax**, as the **personal allowance** remains frozen at **£12,570**, leaving little headroom before tax liability begins.\n\nThose on the **basic (old) state pension** — paid to people who reached retirement age before April 2016 — will see an increase of **£440.41**, bringing payments to **£9,614.80 a year**, up from **£9,175.40** (or **£176.45 per week**).\n\nThe **Government is expected to confirm the uplift** for 2026–27 at the **Budget on 26 November**, under **Chancellor Rachel Reeves**.\n\nThe **triple lock**, introduced in **2011**, guarantees that the state pension increases each year by the **highest of**:\n\n-\n**Average earnings growth**,\n\n-\n**September CPI inflation**, or\n\n-\n**2.5%**.\n\nHowever, the policy faces growing scrutiny. Critics argue it is **financially unsustainable**, with the **Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR)** estimating it will cost **£15.5 billion annually by 2030**, amid a widening **£50 billion gap in public finances** and an ageing population.\n\nThe **Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS)** has urged the Government to **replace the triple lock** with a **wage-linked system**, warning that maintaining it could eventually **push the UK’s retirement age to 74** to keep the system affordable."}