Ministers were told they must rethink their move to block a bumper payout to pensioners this year to save the Treasury £5billion. Payments were set to rise by up to £14 a week because the pandemic skewed the figures used to calculate the rise.

But the government said it was suspending the lock for a year to “ensure fairness for both pensioners and taxpayers”.

Baroness Altmann spearheaded a campaign in the Lords to change the legislation that would enact the policy.

The former pensions minister’s amendment to allow the lock to be maintained, but with adjustments to take account of the impact of Covid crisis, was backed by 220 votes to 178.

She said: “Already more than half of single pensioners are living in fuel poverty, mostly women, while 13 percent of older households live in extreme fuel poverty.

“Those numbers will undoubtedly grow if this Bill is passed without amendment, especially as rising energy costs are hitting so many with massive increases in their bills.”

The Conservative peer added: “What does it say if the elderly are used to help fund Budget reductions in alcohol duty and bank taxation?”

The triple lock guaranteed state pension rises in line with inflation, earnings or 2.5 percent ‑ whichever is higher.

Average earnings went up by 8.1 percent because they were measured against the same period the year before, which means they were compared to pandemic wages.

Baroness Altmann said figures could have been revised closer to five per cent to take covid into account.

Labour’s Baroness Sherlock called for the Government to measure the impact removing the pensions triple lock would have on people living in poverty as they grow older.

“We need the Government to face into the growing problem of pensioner poverty and to develop a longer-term strategy for tackling it,” she said.

“If the Government wants to break its manifesto commitment it should at least be committed to gathering and publishing information about the impact of that decision.”

Lib Dem Baroness Janke said the decision to scrap the triple lock would leave pensioners “out of pocket as we approach what is set to be another difficult winter”.

“This decision is both callous and cruel,” she said.