The Government has decided to bring forward the increase in the state pension age to 68 by seven years.
Adopting the recommendations of the Cridland review into state pension increases, the Government has confirmed that the state pension age will rise from 67 to 68 from 2037.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Work and Pensions Secretary David Gauke said that the Government had to “face up to this long-term challenge not pretend it doesn’t exist.”
The Government added in a press release that “those affected by this proposed timetable will on average still receive more state pension over their lifetime than generations before them.”
By October 2020, the Government had already committed to increasing the state pension age from 65 to 66. By 2028 this was set to rise to 67 and then 68 by 2046.
It appears the government were not convinced that more creative solutions were administratively viable.
The announcements are interesting in the context of the decision to maintain the triple lock, which causes the state pension to ratchet up ahead of inflation and earnings. The Conservatives had planned to end the triple lock, but conceded it in their negotiations with the DUP. So on the one hand they are maintaining state pension increases for today’s retirees, while at the same time telling people age 47 and under that they will have to work longer before receiving their state pension.
In an unsure world you can guarantee that pension rules will always be changing!