Around 20,000 pensioners in Llanelli will receive up to £470 more per year from this month. This comes after the UK Government confirmed a 4.1% rise in the state pension for 2025/26.
Labour remains firmly committed to the pensions triple lock, which guarantees that the state pension goes up each year by the highest of 2.5%, inflation, or earnings growth, for the whole of the parliament. It is this that has provided extra cash for pensioners and is set to deliver around £1,900 over the course of this parliament.
We are continuing the biggest ever drive to ensure pensioners eligible for Pension Credit are receiving it, resulting in an 81% increase in claims. Nearly fifty thousand extra pensioners are now getting Pension Credit which is worth on average £4,300 a year and unlocks other support including help with Housing Costs, Council Tax and free television licenses. 1.3 million households in England and Wales also still receive Winter Fuel Payments.
In addition to this, we have also announced recently we are supporting people of all ages caring for loved ones – who will see the biggest ever increase in the earnings threshold for Carer’s Allowance. The threshold will increase by £45 a week to £196, benefitting more than 60,000 carers by the end of this Parliament.
And 2,600 of the lowest paid in our county, have received a pay rise this month as new National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage rates take effect. Full-timers on the National Living Wage will see a real-terms increase of £1,400 per year and apprentices, will get a rise of 18%.
I have consistently backed plans to increase wages and give more people in Wales the opportunity of better paid, secure work and I am pleased to see many across Llanelli will now benefit from that.