Pensions: Council Tax
Work and Pensions
Tom Brake (Shadow Minister, Department for Communities and Local Government; Carshalton and Wallington, Liberal Democrat)
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what account he takes of changes in the level of council tax in setting pension rates.
Mike O'Brien (Minister of State (Pension Reform), Department for Work and Pensions; North Warwickshire, Labour)
The Secretary of State is required by law to review the levels of state pension and to increase those levels at least in line with prices. It has been the practice for many years to increase state pension in line with the September Retail Prices Index although for some years in the recent past it has increased by more.
In calculating the Retail Prices Index, account is taken of variations in a wide range of goods and services to reflect the typical change in costs, both increases and decreases, that people face from year to year. This includes average council tax bills for households in Great Britain.