The U.K. temporarily shelved plans to raise its pension age following a decline in life expectancy.
The
government needs more time to assess the latest life expectancy data,
which has been skewed by the effects of COVID-19, according to
government insiders cited by the Financial Times.
- The U.K. planned to raise the age at which citizens receive state pensions from 66 to 68 sometime between 2037 and 2039.
- The government intended to confirm the plan in May, but the final decision has been delayed until after the election next year.
- The
last pension age review anticipated a rise in life expectancy that did
not materialize, according to former pensions minister Steve Webb.
- Webb
noted that, rather than rising as anticipated, life expectancy at
retirement actually fell in the U.K. by two years since the review.
- Former
pensions minister Ros Altmann attributed the decline to the effect of
the pandemic on the elderly and to problems with the U.K.'s National
Health Service (NHS).
- Efforts by the French government to raise the pension age triggered widespread protests and rolling strikes in recent weeks.
- The U.K.'s Office for Budget Responsibility reports that pensions are expected to cost the U.K. government £148B ($181B) by 2027/28, up from £110B ($134.5B) in 2022/23.
