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National Insurance Contributions Bill

I think that the hon. Gentleman is forgetting that this is part of a package. It is not my job to defend the Government, but I have quoted the figures, which range from a top gain of £325 a year to a maximum loss of £223 a year. Yes, there is a loss, but our argument—very different from that of the Conservative party—is that we would rather have seen the savings to the Exchequer of between £300 million and £400 million being used to restore the link between the state pension and average earnings. We want that link restored immediately, which we believe would cost something in the order of £450 million to £500 million. The sums involved are therefore roughly comparable and we believe that it is an important point of principle to take serious measures to tackle pensioner poverty.