Ministers have delayed plans to raise the state pension age to 68 amid falling life expectancy in the UK, according to reports.
According to FTAdviser's sister publication, The Financial Times, there have been warnings from Tory MPs that hiking the state pension age could provoke a backlash from middle-aged voters.
The state pension age, currently 66, is due to increase to 68 after 2044 however reports earlier this year suggested the government wanted to bring this forward to between 2037 and 2039.
The plan was due to be confirmed in May, but the government will now push the decision beyond next year’s election, officials told the Financial Times.
Dean Butler, managing director for customers at Standard Life, said the news will be met with a "sigh of relief" from those who would have been affected.
“When rumours of a planned increase were first reported in January it prompted thousands of people to go online with 110,000 searches for ‘retirement age’ recorded. This was an 82 per cent increase on the same period last year, highlighting just how significant the issue is for many people," he said.
“Those currently in their early fifties were the first that could have been impacted by the changes and these would have been particularly challenging for a number of groups."
He added: “Those planning to start accessing their personal savings before for state pension age would have had to consider whether they would have stretched far enough to bridge the gap, while others would have faced an extended period in the workforce.”
Given the widely-expected faster rise in SPA, in the face of stalling rises to life expectancy would have been met with accusations of heartlessness, this seems like the government making the right decision, even if it is arguably from the base motive of securing votes https://t.co/7jv20LcD6l
— Tom McPhail (@PensionsMonkey) March 22, 2023
A DWP spokesperson said: “The government is required by law to regularly review the state pension age and the next review will be published by May 7.”
At an evidence session on the state pension age review last month, John Cridland, first independent reviewer of the SPA (2016-17) said a cultural change in the world of work had a big part to play in pensions.
He said organisations in both the private and public sector need to redefine job roles in order to avoid age discrimination and encourage more people into work.
sonia.rach@ft.com
