THE Conservatives will today seek to shore up their support among pensioners, in a fightback against a disastrous opening to their party conference.

Chancellor George Osborne will unveil plans to abolish a “punitive” 55 per cent tax on pension pots levied when most people die.

From next April, the beneficiaries when the deceased is aged 75 or over will only have to pay their marginal income tax rate, normally 20 per cent.

The pension pot will be passed on tax-free when someone under 75 dies, in a move expected to benefit around 320,000 people each year – at a cost of £150m.

Mr Osborne will tell the conference: “People who have worked and saved all their lives will be able to pass on their hard-earned pensions to their families tax-free.

“Freedom for people’s pensions. A pension tax abolished. Not a promise for the next Conservative Government – but put in place by Conservatives in Government now.”

The move comes after the defection of Tory MP Mark Reckless to UKIP threatened to derail David Cameron’s pre-election conference.

Stunned activists in Birmingham heard party chairman Grant Shapps condemn Mr Reckless, telling them: “He lied and lied and lied again.”

Nervous Tory whips were on the hunt for other disillusioned MPs preparing to embrace UKIP.

Coupled with the resignation of minister Brooks Newmark – who resigned after being exposed sending explicit pictures of himself to a reporter posing as a female admirer – the conference opened amid “Tory crisis” headlines.

To add to Mr Cameron’s woes, polling by former Tory treasurer Lord Ashcroft found Labour was heading for a comfortable working majority next May.

Lord Ashcroft found that 37 per cent of Conservative voters in 2010 were no longer planning to back the party, with the vast majority defecting to UKIP.

Amid the turmoil, Mr Cameron attempted a fightback, by:

Indicating he is prepared to recommend an ‘out’ vote in his promised EU referendum if he fails to achieve a meaningful renegotiation.

Unveiling a pledge to bar 18 to 21-year-olds without children from housing benefit – and strip them of jobseeker’s allowance if they fail to find a job after six months.

Announcing a plan to cut the annual benefit cap from £26,000 per household to £23,000.

Giving his broadest hint yet that he would extend air strikes against Islamic State (IS) to Syria, but for the failure to reach cross-party agreement.