Tory leadership favourite Liz Truss has publicly said she intends to raise pensions next year by an expected 9-10% next year - amid fears poverty-stricken older people will die in "unprecedented" numbers this winter.
The Foreign Secretary had faced calls to restore the triple lock - which raises pensions by 2.5%, earnings or September's inflation figure - whichever is highest.
It comes as the government faces dire warnings that the number of elderly Brits dying from cold in the winter could reach record levels as the UK grapples with the unfolding energy crisis.
Age UK sounded the alarm in a bleak message to the squabbling Tories vying to be the next PM, with director Caroline Abrahams calling for urgent government action.
She said: "If this doesn't happen our sincere belief is that we could see unprecedented numbers of older people dying of cold in their own homes, something we would never say lightly and that is incredibly shocking in the 21st century."
At a hustings event in Perth last night, Ms Truss responded to calls to restore the triple lock - returning to the broken Tory manifesto pledge.
It is expected this will amount around 10% due to the high inflation rate.
She said: "I won’t fudge the figures, I’m fully committed to the triple lock, which gives the highest rate."
A survey by Age UK found 57% said restoring the triple lock is the biggest issue they want to see addressed, alongside help with the cost of living.
One pensioner, among 14,000 who responded to the charity's survey, said: "This is almost like going back to January 1940 for some of us when rationing was introduced during World War Two.”
Another wrote: "Heating and food are my main concern. At present I am cutting back on food, buying cheaper brands, not buying clothes just so I can put enough by to pay for oil and electric."
Ms Abrahams said: "The way the cost of living keeps rising is a nightmare for us all, but especially for people on low incomes, among them millions of pensioners. "Every day the news about inflation seems to get worse, it’s no wonder some older people have told us they have switched off the news because they can’t bear to hear any more."
Age UK has written to Ms Truss and Mr Sunak saying that energy bills could consume 45% of the average state pension next year - and said committing to bringing back the triple lock would provide "huge reassurance".
Yesterday The Mirror reported that energy bills could rise even higher than previously feared, reaching nearly £5,500 in the spring - as Tory favourite Liz Truss faces pressure to come clean on how she'll handle the crisis.
Forecasters said that if gas prices don't drop in the next few months, the energy price cap could hit £4,650 in January and £5,456 by April - a mammoth £104 a WEEK.
Energy consultancy Auxilione today issued the worst warning yet - warning that even when prices begin to fall next summer, they will still be thousands of pounds more than they are at the moment.
Ms Truss, who is widely tipped to take over as PM next month, yesterday branded Labour plans to freeze the energy cap until April "sticking plasters on the problem".
In response, rival Rishi Sunak's campaign branded her response to the unfolding catastrophe "clear as mud" as blue-on-blue infighting continues.
