After humming and hawing, Nigel Farage has said he wants to keep the triple lock on state pensions. It may be Reform’s worst mistake yet.

The triple lock, which was introduced in 2011, means taxpayer-funded pensions rise each year in line with either inflation, wage increases or 2.5 percent – whichever is the highest. Designed to tackle pensioner poverty, the Office for Budget Responsibility now estimates it will cost around £15.5bn per year by the end of this parliament in 2029, around three times what was originally forecast when it was brought in.

Keeping it comes with some obvious political benefits. Farage wants to hold on to the older voters he’s persuaded to back him – they’re more reliable at turning out at the ballot box.

But by doing so, he’s created different difficulties. He’s signalled to young people where his priorities lie. Unless Reform can offset the eye-watering cost of the policy by massive cuts elsewhere, this is a spending pledge. Reform is bribing older voters at the expense of their children and grandchildren.

Farage is not the only one at it. The siren calls of the Greens, the SNP and some even in the Cabinet to borrow more to pay for everything from increased defence spending to energy bills come from a similarly depressing and dishonest school of thought. Defer the pain, hike up national debt, and let another generation pay later.

One reason Reform’s decision to commit to the triple lock is so noteworthy is that Farage is the only person who could have given Labour, the Conservatives and the........

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