Today's inflation figures (19 October) mean UK pensioners will be in line for a record-breaking increase to their state pension after prime minister Liz Truss said she was "completely committed" to the triple lock.

UK Consumer Prices Index (CPI) returned to double-digit figures for September hitting 10.1% as the cost of food and non-alcoholic beverages soared.

The September inflation figure is one of the key elements for the state pension triple lock formula. The other two being wages and 2.5%.

Speaking during a heated Prime Minister's Questions, Truss said she was "completely committed" to the state pension uprating mechanism.

Maintaining the triple lock would see the full state pension increase from £185.15 per week to £203.85 per week from April next year. This would be £10,600.20 per year, the first time the state pension has breached the £10,000 mark, according to LCP partner and former pensions minister Steve Webb.

"This would be a significant increase for those who are relying on the state pension as their main source of income and who have been faced with rising costs for many months now," commented St James's Place divisional director Claire Trott. "Not to mention it would also be a welcome improvement from last year's increase of 3.1% when we had a double lock - which may well continue this year."

The triple lock promise was broken in 2022 as the government was concerned that a post-pandemic rise in average earnings would have meant an increase in pensions by 8%.

In her manifesto and as recently as two weeks ago  Liz Truss said she was "committed" to maintaining triple lock payments.

However, earlier today a spokesman told the BBC following the release of the inflation figures that the PM was "not making any commitments" on government spending.

The spokesman said moving away from the previous triple lock commitment was a "mutual decision" by the prime minister and the chancellor, and it was their "agreed position" to prioritise economic stability.

However, Truss came out fighting at PMQs. She twice said: "I am a fighter, not a quitter!"

She added: "I am completely committed to the triple lock and so is the chancellor."

Breaking promises or fiscal stability

Questions over the new administration's commitment to the triple lock have surfaced in recent days.

The issue faced by the prime minister and chancellor Jeremy Hunt is for every 1% increase in the state pension the government will need to find around £900m a year. This comes at a time when Hunt has been tasked with restoring the fiscal plan and stability of the country.

Several commentators noted that suspending the triple lock would have caused a significant strain for pensioners at a difficult time.

Hargreaves Lansdown senior pensions and retirement analyst Helen Morrissey said it would have been a "disaster".

"To be denied such an increase would come as a bitter blow to the many pensioners who rely on state pension as the foundation of their retirement income," she commented. "Many of them will have been under severe financial pressure in recent months as inflation pushed their essential bills ever skyward."

Commenting after the PM's commitment, Morrissey said: "In the latest twist in the triple lock saga, Liz Truss has again re-iterated commitment to the state pension triple lock which means pensioners could be in line for a 10.1% increase next year. This comes after new chancellor Jeremy Hunt initially refused to confirm the triple lock would be returning after being suspended last year.

"The uprating doesn't tend to be confirmed until November, but this announcement will come as a huge relief to pensioners who have been banking on an inflation-linked increase after their budgets have come under intolerable pressure in recent months. The PM had said she would keep the triple lock several times during her leadership campaign, but there were concerns that when faced with a gap in public finances the new chancellor might be tempted to shelve an inflation-linked increase."

She added: "After such a trying time, pensioners need certainty about how their state pension will be uprated, and there still may be worries that given the pace of U-turns we have seen, this latest promise can't be guaranteed. Longer term we may well see calls to reform the triple lock increase, but any such reform will need to happen alongside consideration of how state pension age is due to be increased. A review on this issue has been submitted to government and is due to be published next year. Any changes to the triple lock will need to take its findings into account."