Claimants born after 1951 may get extra £657 from April | Personal Finance | Finance

State pensioners born after 1951 could be in for a £657 boost under the proposed Triple Lock projections, with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) set to increase payments. The full new State Pension in the UK for the 2025/26 tax year stands at £11,973 annually, or £230.25 weekly.

However, with the Triple Lock’s earnings growth element currently at 5.5%, those eligible for the full state pension, including men born post-1951 and women born post-1953, might see their weekly payments climb to £242.90.

This would translate to a four-weekly payment of £971.60, totalling an annual sum of £12,630.80. The Triple Lock ensures that DWP payments rise each year by the highest of either average annual earnings growth from May to July, CPI in the year to September, or 2.5 % .

These projections come against a backdrop of a 0.1% dip in UK growth in May 2025, as reported by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Nonetheless, GDP saw a 0.5% rise over March to May 2025, slightly surpassing the 0.4% forecast, reports Birmingham Live.

Professor Joe Nellis from MHA commented on the economic situation: “This is a far cry from the strong growth in the first quarter of the year when a surge in exports and a robust performance in the services sector placed the UK among the G7’s top performers.”

He added: “Growth over the first half of the year is now expected to be modest.

“Despite a more positive outlook for the remainder of the year, this presents a challenge to the Chancellor – her fiscal headroom remains limited by high levels of public borrowing and debt and her spending plans are heavily reliant on kickstarting the economy.

“Just as last year, we now wait tentatively for the Autumn Budget to find out how the Chancellor aims to solve her fiscal problems.”

Mr Nellis added: “Something must change – she must either cut spending, increase borrowing, or raise taxes. We expect a squeeze on unprotected Government budgets to cut spending, but the recent rebellion in the Labour Party against the welfare reform bill shows that major spending cuts may be too politically dangerous for the Government.

“The OBR’s July report highlighted the intense burden that the triple lock on the state pension places on the UK economy – demographic and economic shifts have made this policy difficult to uphold, but any attempt to undo it would move the Government into treacherous waters.”