Pensioner Poverty: challenges and mitigations

Work and Pensions Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 22 Nov 2024 Closed: 1 Jan 2026 Parliament page
Are pension age benefits and the State Pension enough to stop pensioners from falling into poverty? We are looking at the state of pensioner poverty in the UK. Which groups are most affected? What are the health impacts? How do the State Pension and other pension age benefits mitigate the … Read more
12 Recommendations
31 Conclusions
1 Report
8 Oral sessions
1 Letter
8 Events
Activity timeline 19 events
10 Nov
2025
Report published
24 Jul
2025
Report published
25 Jun
2025
Correspondence
4 Jun
2025
Oral evidence
4 Jun
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 16, Palace of Westminster
21 May
2025
Oral evidence
21 May
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 6, Palace of Westminster
12 May
2025
Oral evidence
12 May
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Senedd, Cardiff
30 Apr
2025
Oral evidence
30 Apr
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 16, Palace of Westminster
26 Mar
2025
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 8 sessions
4 Jun 2025
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Work and Pensions Committee
Andrew Latto · Department for Work and Pensions Laura Adelman · Department for Work and Pensions Torsten Bell MP · Department for Work and Pensions
21 May 2025
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Work and Pensions Committee
Anthony Pygram · Committee on Fuel Poverty Ned Hammond · Energy UK Peter Smith · National Energy Action Simon Francis · End Fuel Poverty Coalition
12 May 2025
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Pensioner Poverty
Faye Patton · Care and Repair Cymru Rhian Bowen-Davies, Older People's Commissioner for Wales Victoria Lloyd · Age Cymru
30 Apr 2025
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Pensioner Poverty: Panel 1; Pensioner Poverty: Panel 2; Pensioner Poverty: Panel 3
David Finch · The Health Foundation Dr David Attwood · Pathfields Medical Group Dr Ruth Law · The British Geriatrics Society Professor Sir Michael Marmot · University College London (UCL) Toby North · Marie Curie
26 Mar 2025
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Work and Pensions Committee
Daphne Hall · National Association of Welfare Rights Advisers (NAWRA) Dr Juliet Stone · Centre for Research in Social Policy, Loughborough University Dr Kingsley Purdam · Manchester University Gareth Morgan · Ferret Information Systems Gary Vaux · Hertfordshire County Council Professor Matt Padley · Loughborough University
26 Feb 2025
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Work and Pensions Committee
Alistair Smyth · National Housing Federation Councillor David Fothergill · Local Government Association Deven Ghelani · Policy in Practice Fabian Chessell · Policy in Practice
22 Jan 2025
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Work and Pensions Committee
Angela Madden · The WASPI Campaign Debbie de Spon · The WASPI Campaign Dr Daniella Jenkins · Women’s Budget Group Dr Suzy Morrissey · Pensions Policy Institute Karl Banister · Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Sasjkia Otto · Fabian Society Sue Ferns · Prospect Trade Union
18 Dec 2024
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Work and Pensions Committee
Adam Stachura · Age Scotland Carl Emmerson · Institute of Fiscal Studies Carole Easton · Centre for Aging Better Caroline Abrahams · Age UK Daniella Silcock, Independent Research Consultant Jonathan Safir · National Pensioners Convention Morgan Vine · Independent Age Peter Matejic · Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Title HC No. Published Items Response
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: challenges and mitigations HC 465 24 Jul 2025 43 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
10 results
Clear
9 Conclusion Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
Older people's interests are unheard, demonstrating the effectiveness of an independent Commissioner
Some older people do not feel that their interests are being heard in government decision making. Wales’ Older People’s Commissioner has made a substantial difference in areas including digital inclusion, care homes and access to GP practices. The Commissioner’s statutory … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges the effectiveness of Wales' Older People's Commissioner and commits to considering its experience and impact to inform its future thinking in England.
Department for Work and Pensions
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15 Conclusion Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
Warm Homes Discount insufficient; widespread support for a more generous social tariff.
Direct reductions in energy bills ensure that money is spent on energy, giving pensioners the confidence needed to turn the heating on. This is currently provided through the Warm Homes Discount, which provides a discount of £150 on bills for … Read more
Government Response
The government announced the expansion of the Warm Home Discount to 6 million households this winter and acknowledges that those not on means-tested benefits miss out on support due to data availability. It is working on data matching and will detail its approach in a new Fuel Poverty Strategy later this year.
Department for Work and Pensions
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20 Conclusion Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
Existing DWP trust issues impact older people's willingness to claim benefits.
The Minister referred to the reputation of the Department and the reluctance of people to engage with it. We know that trust issues exist between working age people and the Department, and these will endure as they reach pension age. … Read more
Government Response
The government states it is strengthening its communications approach by embedding messaging that positions DWP as a supportive service and developing accessible materials to help people access their entitlements.
Department for Work and Pensions
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22 Conclusion Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
Legislative differences complicate benefit mergers and impact Pension Credit for carers.
Differences in rules mean that it is not straightforward to award one benefit based on information provided for another without changes in legislation. We look forward to seeing the consultation on the Government’s proposed merger of Housing Benefit and Pension … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges the confusing system for carers to qualify for Pension Credit and states it is considering ways to improve the link between Carer’s Allowance and Pension Credit, as well as application routes for pensioners with caring responsibilities.
Department for Work and Pensions
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26 Conclusion Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
Multi-year funding for Crisis and Resilience Fund supports local welfare and take-up.
Local Welfare Support plays an important role both in crisis support and in funding take-up campaigns. We note the importance of longer-term funding to allow local authorities to plan ahead and so welcome the announcement in the Spending Review of … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges the importance of the Crisis and Resilience Fund for preventative support and benefit take-up, and is working closely with stakeholders on its detailed design, planning to issue guidance before the scheme starts on 1 April 2026.
Department for Work and Pensions
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27 Recommendation Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
Encourage using Crisis and Resilience fund for benefits take-up and assess advice sector capacity needs.
When the guidance is produced, it should encourage the use of the Crisis and Resilience fund for benefit take-up work. The Government should assess what more is needed to increase the advice sector capacity needed to support this work. (Recommendation, … Read more
Government Response
The government recognizes the importance of benefit take-up and the advice sector, stating they are working on the Crisis and Resilience Fund's detailed design, including considering advice sector capacity, with guidance due by April 2026.
Department for Work and Pensions
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30 Conclusion Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
State pension design and level significantly influence pensioner poverty and health outcomes.
We note evidence from the UK and internationally shows that the design and level of state pension benefits can have a significant impact on pensioner poverty, as well as improving health outcomes. (Conclusion, Paragraph 146)
Government Response
The government acknowledges challenges in the pensions system for future generations and has established a Pensions Commission to examine long-term questions of adequacy and retirement outcomes, alongside plans to support employment.
Department for Work and Pensions
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31 Conclusion Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
Pensions adequacy review welcomed for focusing on outcomes and diverse measurement approaches.
We welcome the pensions adequacy review and its focus on outcomes. We note that there are different measures, which are all helpful in telling us different things, such as: replacement rates indicate the extent to which 86 people are able … Read more
Government Response
The government confirms the Pensions Commission's terms of reference include adequacy and improving retirement outcomes for vulnerable groups, stating the Commission will consider all evidence, engage stakeholders, and submit its final report in 2027.
Department for Work and Pensions
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33 Conclusion Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
Many pensioners, including 2.1 million, rely on inadequate State Pension and experience hardship.
One in eight pensioners rely solely on the state pension and it makes up 80% of the retirement income of the poorest pensioners. The Minister for Pensions said to us that the State Pension formed the ‘bedrock of Government support’ … Read more
Government Response
The government reaffirms its commitment to pensioners, highlighting the Triple Lock and significant spending on State Pensions, and mentions past government actions to support low-income households and improve retirement outcomes.
Department for Work and Pensions
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39 Conclusion Acknowledged
2nd Report - Pensioner Poverty: ch…
Rising number of private renting pensioners are at increased risk of poverty from Local Housing Allowance.
The Pensions Policy Institute expects the number and proportion of pensioners renting privately to grow from around 6% now to 17% in 2041. As many as 400,000 households could become dependent on means-tested benefits. Pensioners renting privately are already at … Read more
Government Response
The government explained the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) and mentioned its increase in April 2024, alongside the availability of Discretionary Housing Payments. It also detailed a new Social and Affordable Homes Programme and noted that the upcoming Long-Term Housing Strategy will consider housing for older people.
Department for Work and Pensions
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Government Response AI assessment · 42 of 12 classified
Accepted 10
Accepted in Part 1
Acknowledged 10
Deferred 7
Not Addressed 8
Rejected 6
Total 12 recs + 31 conclusions
Correspondence 1 letter
25 Jun 2025 From committee Letter to Torsten Bell MP, Minister for Pensions. relating to the Pensioner Poverty evidence session on 4 June
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