The grey vote: Can Nigel Farage risk doing what Labour, Conservative parties haven’t since 2012?

Amid rising popularity and poor economic growth, far-right Reform UK has indicated it could abolish the policy of annual hikes in state pension. Despite poor fiscal health, neither major political party has dared to touch state pension out of fear of losing the ‘grey vote’.

Reform Deputy Leader Richard Tice told Politico that “we don’t guarantee” annual state mention hikes.

Tice said, “Everything’s up for review, because nothing’s affordable if we keep spending more than we’re earning. And we’ve said that consistently … if we the country go bust, which is the direction of travel we’re heading, one way or the other, nothing’s affordable.”

Since 2012, British state pension rises every year by either 2.5 per cent or the year’s inflation average — whichever is higher. Economists have suggested that the scheme is unsustainable. But no one touched it far.

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Since last year, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s ratings have kept falling but Reform UK’s ratings have kept increasing.

As per a YouGov survey conducted last month, 27 per cent people said they would vote for Reform UK, 20 per cent preferred the Labour Party, and the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats were tied at 17 pe cent.

But Reform UK does not have a plan — yet

Even though the Reform UK has said it could abolish the state pension policy, it has not outlined its plan for a better system.

Reform chief Nigel Farage has said that the decision on the policy will be taken “between now and the next election”. A senior ally of the party leader predicted a decision might not even come next year.

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But, even in the absence of any final decision or an alternative’s announcement, the very declaration of the intent to abolish the state pension policy could alter the British political landscape.

One senior Reform figure told Politico that the priority should be to raise the income tax threshold for adults. They said that this would allow pensioners to keep more of their private or workplace pensions even if state pension growth slows down.

Tice, the party’s deputy leader, has suggested that they are not looking at issue, but at all aspects of fiscal policy.

Tice said, “You’re not asking about the much, much bigger issue, right — which is, how long can we carry on offering defined benefit pensions to all public sector workers? That is a much, much bigger issue that is not properly discussed in Westminster, in the media and so on. All [these issues], they’re all related. They’re all important, and they all fit into a jigsaw.”

Tice said that he wants to ask “fundamental questions about all of these big issues” and compared his party’s efforts as being at “at base camp on Everest”.