Andy Burnham urged to scrap state pension triple lock to fund social care

Speaking on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Mr Burnham said: "It will be a system of that kind, so everyone contributes, everyone's covered.

"But not precisely, necessarily, in the same way that we currently pay for the NHS."

Baroness Casey, the Whitehall troubleshooter currently conducting a review into the sector, will advise on how best to deliver the reforms.

Senior Labour figures have already begun making the case for ending the triple lock guarantee, which since 2010 has ensured the state pension rises annually by whichever is highest out of inflation, wage growth, or 2.5 per cent.

Darren Jones, the former chief secretary to the prime minister, suggested the policy's cost could be redirected.

"If you're reallocating money to help older people in the social care system, maybe there's some reform that could be made there," he said.

Lord Blunkett, the former work and pensions secretary, went further, telling The Telegraph that Mr Burnham should move to axe the triple lock swiftly, a step that could save up to £22billion by 2030.

"The honest truth is that there is an extremely good intellectual case for ending the triple lock, but it needs to be done this side of an election," he said.

Mr Burnham has ruled out any changes to the triple lock during the current parliament, bound by Sir Keir Starmer's 2024 election commitment to leave the guarantee untouched for this term. However, he has not closed the door on tax increases to fund the reforms.

The Prime Minister pointed to "commitments in the manifesto that would make it hard to do it in this parliament" and acknowledged that funding decisions could prove "difficult or unpopular".

While this appeared to reference the possibility of breaking Labour's promise not to raise VAT, National Insurance or income tax, some within the party believe he could instead announce the end of the triple lock alongside his social care plans at the next election, packaging the two together to soften the blow with pensioners.

A senior Whitehall source said no decision on the triple lock's future had yet been taken, with manifesto commitments to be determined by Mr Burnham and Chancellor John Healey.

Unlike the NHS, social care in England is not free at the point of use. Those with savings above £23,250 are not eligible for council support with care costs.

Scotland already offers free personal care to all adults assessed as needing help with everyday tasks such as eating and bathing.

Mr Burnham has said: "I don't think it's right that people in England don't get the same."

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp criticised the proposals, accusing Labour of seeking "more tax rises" and confirming the Conservatives would not back such an approach.

Sharon Graham, the general secretary of Unite, warned that trading the triple lock for a new care system would face union resistance.

How the state pension triple lock has changed over the years | GB NEWS / FIDELITY INTERNATIONAL

"That shouldn't be instead of the triple lock," she said, arguing that British pensioners already receive among the lowest payments in the G7.

The debate comes against a backdrop of surging welfare costs. Pensions already represent the single largest element of the welfare budget, which is projected to exceed £400billion a year by the end of this parliament.

Louise Haigh, one of Mr Burnham's closest Cabinet allies, indicated that spending reductions could extend beyond unemployment and disability benefits.

She told The Observer that Labour MPs would "get behind a plan that will sustainably bring the welfare bill as a whole down".