LABOUR is making a pledge to Britain’s pensioners and those approaching older age that it will guarantee their incomes “regardless of the Tories' shambolic handling of Brexit” by maintaining the state pension triple lock beyond 2020.

During this parliament the UK Government has promised to keep the controversial triple lock, which means they rise by the higher of the growth in average earnings, the Consumer Price Index or 2.5 per cent.

Recently however, Philip Hammond, the Chancellor, raised a question-mark about whether the commitment would continue after the next General Election in May 2020 by promising in his Autumn Statement to “review public spending priorities and other commitments” given the bleak fiscal forecasts in wake of the Brexit vote.

Some have argued that during the years of austerity pensioners have fared well compared to younger generations and that maintaining the triple lock would be unfair.

But John McDonnell, the Shadow Chancellor, and his colleague Debbie Abrahams, the Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, will, on a visit on Wednesday to the Southwark Pensioners Centre in South London, give a firm commitment to Britain's grey vote that the next Labour government would protect the triple lock and pensioner benefits such as the TV licence, bus passes and the winter fuel allowance.

"After six wasted years of Tory economic failure that has seen some have to wait longer to receive their pension, and those in work approaching retirement having to work longer with earnings stagnating, Labour won’t let them face further uncertainty or reductions income,” declared Mr McDonnell ahead of the visit.

"The OBR and Bank of England are projecting inflation to rise in the years ahead and with the Tory Government all over the place on Brexit, there is too much uncertainty for those on fixed incomes such as pensioners.”

The Shadow Chancellor argued that those older people who voted for Brexit did not do so to see their incomes threatened as a result.

“Labour is instead committed to protecting pensioner incomes in our country and we will provide the certainty that this government refuses to whether it is on the state pensions or the crisis in our care service.

"It is only a Labour government that can make an economic success of Brexit, so that no one and no community is left behind," he added.

Meantime, Labour risked a fresh split on immigration as Sir Keir Starmer, the Shadow Brexit Secretary, insisted that changes to European Union free movement rules must form part of the negotiations for quitting the bloc.

Sir Keir acknowledged that scrapping the cherished EU principle of free movement of labour would make it harder to maintain tariff-free access to the prized single market.

But he said the issue could not be ignored if the bitter divides caused by the EU referendum campaign were to be healed.

"The status quo is not an option," said the Shadow Secretary of State. "Labour recognises that without the hard work and skill of migrants our public services, our businesses and our economy would suffer but we have also always been the party that values strong, cohesive communities.”

He added: "In the negotiations to come, it is incumbent on the Government to fight for the fullest possible market access and reasonable management of migration."

His comments came just days after Diane Abbott, the Shadow Home Secretary, said the UK could not "dump" free movement and stay in the single market.

She said: "Access to the single market and freedom of movement are inextricably linked, and it would be wrong - and the Labour Party has said this over and over again - to put the economy anything other than first."