How can any pensioner ever trust Labour again?

When Alistair Darling announced in the pre-budget report that pensions would be increased by 2.5% many, if not all pensioners must have sensed a little relief knowing they would at the very least get an increase in their weekly pension.

But as time ticked on the Labour plans started to unravel as people realised that yet again the Labour budget was all spin.

The State Earnings Related Pension (Serps) will in fact be frozen, the small earnings-related supplement called the graduated pension will also be frozen and the additional pension of £57.05 paid to 41,000 men who have wives under 60 will also remain at this years rate.

According to the BBC "Also under threat is the increase in the extra pension of £7 a week paid to 1.2 million over 60s who have delayed their retirement. That could also be included in the freeze policy when details are revealed on Monday."

So, Alistair Daring was quite obviously not entirely honest with the pensioners of Britain when he got up last week in the House of Commons and said "basic state pension will not be frozen, but will rise by 2.5% in April".






That to me implies a pension would go up by 2.5%.

As the BBC have worked out this is a pile of rubbish and given the fact of how many pensioners in this country still live in poverty, still cannot afford to heat their homes and cannot afford to eat properly Alistair Darling, Gordon Brown and the Labour Party should be bloody ashamed of themselves for this manipulative play on words.

It is time for honesty in today's politics and Labour have been far from honest with this announcement.