No evidence Rachel Reeves said pensions ‘can no longer be an entitlement for all’

Posts circulating on social media claim the new Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves MP said: “the State Pension is a benefit, it can no longer be an entitlement for all’, while announcing “new pension rules” whereby those earning £30,000 or more, who pay into a work-based or private pension for 30 years, will no longer qualify for a state pension. 

But Full Fact could find no evidence Ms Reeves made any such comment, or that she has announced these plans for pensions since becoming the UK’s chancellor on Friday 5 July.   

The posts, which appear on both X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook, have almost identical text, saying: “UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves announces new Pension rules by saying ‘The State Pension is a benefit, it can no longer be an entitlement for all’ Under the plan those earning £30,000 or more, and paying into a work-based or private pension for 30 years or more will no longer qualify.”

One post adds: “Only took Labour 72 hours to decide to rob the pensioners,” while another says: “To all of you who vote Labour, I hope you have made provisions for your retirement”. Some posts appear to suggest this is being reported by the BBC, sharing an image of its logo. 

Ms Reeves did not reference pensions in a speech to Treasury staff on 5 July, and she also did not announce any plans to change the qualifying criteria for state pension in a speech on 8 July. She did say: “And we will turn our attention to the pensions system, to drive investment in homegrown businesses and deliver greater returns to pension savers.”

No such plans to set a threshold on pensions have been announced on her social media platforms, or in press releases published by the Treasury. Neither have there been any media reports of this alleged announcement. 

Labour’s manifesto committed to maintaining the pension ‘triple lock’, which means the state pension increases each year in line with either average earnings, inflation or by 2.5%—whichever is the highest. It said: “Labour will retain the triple lock for the state pension. We will also adopt reforms to workplace pensions to deliver better outcomes for UK savers and pensioners. Our pensions review will consider what further steps are needed to improve security in retirement, as well as to increase productive investment in the UK economy.”

It also says in government the party would “undertake a review of the pensions landscape to consider what further steps are needed to improve pension outcomes and increase investment in UK markets”. 

It’s not entirely clear where the claim came from, but one post featuring the claim also included a collage of images that accompanied a GB News article published on 5 July. This article had the headline: “State pension could be means-tested under Labour, admit senior Keir Starmer advisor” and was based on comments made by Sir Edward Troup, reportedly a tax adviser to Ms Reeves, during an interview on LBC. Concerning Mr Troup’s comments, a spokesperson for Labour said: “These are not Labour Party policies”. 

The GB News article did not claim Ms Reeves had announced any changes to pensions, and didn’t include the quote attributed to her in the social media posts.

This is not the first time we’ve seen quotes being falsely attributed to politicians or public figures including now-Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Labour MP Diane Abbott, former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, and Pope Francis. 

We’ve contacted Ms Reeves, the Treasury and Labour party for comment, and will update our article if we receive a response.