OAPS MUST BE GIVEN A 'FAIR DEAL' IN BUDGET

SUE Cook has urged Rachel Reeves to deliver “a fair deal” Budget for OAPs, protecting the pension triple lock and ruling out a tax raid on the most vulnerable.

- By Jonathan Walker Whitehall Editor

PUTTING HER CASE: TV host Sue Cook outside Parliament

The ex-Crimewatch host, 76, joined Later Life Ambitions campaigners who represent 250,000 older people to demand that the Chancellor reverses proposals to make 1.2 million low-income pensioners pay income tax.

They also want her to reveal plans in the Budget on November 26 for firms to employ more staff in their 50s and 60s amid fears that age discrimination is preventing older people from working and providing for their retirement.

Ms Cook, also known for her work on hosting Children in Need, said: "Later life should be a time of purpose, confidence and connection not uncertainty.

"Older people still have a huge amount to give. With the right support and guidance, they can continue not only to enjoy full, independent lives themselves but also giving the benefit of their insight and experience to the rest of society.

"I've put my support behind the LLA's manifesto as a way to ensure a fairer, more sustainable deal for older people."

Ms Cook launched the Budget for Later Life at a Parliament event.

The LLA's campaign brings together the Civil Service Pensioners' Alliance, the National Association of Retired Police Officers and the National Federation of Occupational Pensioners.