Social Security Benefits Up-rating Order 2006

I do not have a great deal to add to my question on the pneumoconiosis instrument regarding the appropriate inflation rate and inflation adjustment, which is as relevant to this order. Perhaps the noble Lord, Lord Hunt, will deal with that now. On the points just raised by the noble Lord, Lord Howard, I do not think that this is the right place to go into general discussion of pensions policy, but I shall just say that this additional age allowance, along with many of the other bells and whistles that pensioners get, is far less important than what should be provided—a decent, non-means-tested citizen’s pension. The priority is to introduce that. Then these other matters would not be significant. However, in the mean time, we need to look at those as well. We have no exception to the order itself.