Latest news with #life expectancy
Daily Mail
22-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Rachel Reeves warns state pension must be 'affordable' after government launches review - amid fears 'triple lock' will push age to 74
has warned that the state pension must be 'affordable' amid fears the younger generation might not get it until they are 74. The Chancellor said increases in life expectancy have to be taken into account after ministers launched a review. Alarm has been sounded about the sustainability of the triple lock, which means the state's old-age payouts rise by whichever is highest out of rates of inflation, earnings or 2.5 per cent every year. The OBR watchdog warned earlier this month that the policy could cost three times as much as originally expected by the end of the decade, as the ageing population piles further pressure on public finances. A government review published last March indicated that if life expectancy returned to the trajectory expected in 2014 the state pension age could be 71 by the late 2050s The pension age is already slated to rise to 67 between 2026 and 2028. Currently the legal position is that it will reach 68 from 2044-46. But a previous report by former Tesco director Baroness Neville-Rolfe cautioned that might need to be accelerated. With the triple lock in place there are estimates the level would have to hit 74 by 2065–67 in order to maintain spending at around 6 per cent of GDP. Ms Reeves told reporters this morning: 'We have just commissioned a review of pensions adequacy, so whether people are saving enough for retirement, and also the state pension age. 'As life expectancy increases it is right to look at the state pension age to ensure that the state pension is sustainable and affordable for generations to come. 'That's why we have asked a very experienced set of experts to look at all the evidence.' Lady Rolfe has suggested setting a rule that Britons receive pensions for 31 per cent of the average life expectancy. Those principles would have big implications for younger workers, with the Tory peer saying that the retirement age should reach 68 between 2041 and 2043. It could then reach 69 between 2046 and 2048 - with those projections indicating that it would need to hit 70 in the early 2050s. That would be when people born in the 1980s would be looking to bow out of the workplace. Dr Suzy Morrissey has been commissioned to look at the 'factors government should consider' on state pension age. And the Government Actuary's Department has been asked to produce a report on the proportion of adult life in retirement. However, it is understood that final decisions are highly unlikely to be taken until the next Parliament, despite concerns about giving people enough time to prepare for changes. Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: 'There will be many factors that need to be assessed during this review of the state pension age. 'One of the most important will be healthy life expectancy which according to the latest data hovers in the early 60s. 'This means the reality is that many people will face real difficulties in continuing to work until their mid-to-late 60s and could face a sizeable income gap while they wait to receive their state pension.' Rachel Vahey, head of public policy at AJ Bell, said: 'An ageing population places an increasing burden on taxpayers, with state pension costs rising and fewer working-age taxpayers to cover the cost. 'Future governments will hope that an improved economy and growing tax receipts will help alleviate some of the pressure. But that can't be guaranteed and there needs to a be a credible plan for maintaining affordability.' The Government says 45 per cent of working-age adults are putting nothing into their pensions. Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said yesterday she was turning to the Pensions Commission, which last met in 2006, to 'tackle the barriers that stop too many saving in the first place'. The previous commission recommended automatically enrolling people in workplace pensions, which has seen the number of eligible employees saving rise from 55 per cent in 2012 to 88 per cent. DWP analysis suggested 15million people were undersaving for retirement, with the self-employed, low paid and some ethnic minorities particularly affected. Around three million self-employed people are said to be saving nothing for their retirement, while only a quarter of people on low pay in the private sector and the same proportion from Pakistani or Bangladeshi backgrounds are saving. Women face a significant gender pensions gap, with those approaching retirement in line to receive barely half the income that men can expect. The commission will be led by Baroness Jeannie Drake, a member of the previous commission, and report in 2027 with proposals that stretch beyond the next election. Laurence O'Brien, a Senior Research Economist at the IFS think-tank, said: 'Despite the success of automatic enrolment in increasing the share of employees saving in a workplace pension, our recent research has shown that, among employees saving in a defined contribution pension, almost seven million appear on course for a disappointing income when they reach retirement. 'Alongside this, only one in five self-employed workers are currently saving in a pension. 'In the face of these trends, the launch of a new Pensions Commission, focusing on the adequacy of retirement incomes is welcome. 'However, any reforms to boost pension saving must be carefully targeted to minimise falls in take-home pay among those who can least afford them.'
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
State pension age review needed to ensure system ‘affordable'
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said a review into raising the state pension age is needed to ensure the system is 'sustainable and affordable'. The Government review is due to report in March 2029 and Ms Reeves said it was 'right' to look at the age at which people can receive the state pension as life expectancy increases. The state pension age is currently 66, rising to 67 by 2028 and the Government is legally required to periodically review the age. The Chancellor told reporters: 'We have just commissioned a review of pensions adequacy, so whether people are saving enough for retirement, and also the state pension age. 'As life expectancy increases it is right to look at the state pension age to ensure that the state pension is sustainable and affordable for generations to come. 'That's why we have asked a very experienced set of experts to look at all the evidence.' The review was announced by the Department for Work and Pensions on Monday and will involve an independent report, led by Dr Suzy Morrissey, on specified factors relevant to the Review of State Pension Age along with the Government Actuary's Department's examination of the latest life expectancy projections data. Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: 'There will be many factors that need to be assessed during this review of the state pension age. 'One of the most important will be healthy life expectancy which according to the latest data hovers in the early 60s. 'This means the reality is that many people will face real difficulties in continuing to work until their mid-to-late 60s and could face a sizeable income gap while they wait to receive their state pension.' Rachel Vahey, head of public policy at AJ Bell, said: 'An ageing population places an increasing burden on taxpayers, with state pension costs rising and fewer working-age taxpayers to cover the cost. 'Future governments will hope that an improved economy and growing tax receipts will help alleviate some of the pressure. But that can't be guaranteed and there needs to a be a credible plan for maintaining affordability.'
The Independent
22-07-2025
- Business
- The Independent
State pension age review needed to ensure system ‘affordable'
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said a review into raising the state pension age is needed to ensure the system is 'sustainable and affordable'. The Government review is due to report in March 2029 and Ms Reeves said it was 'right' to look at the age at which people can receive the state pension as life expectancy increases. The state pension age is currently 66, rising to 67 by 2028 and the Government is legally required to periodically review the age. The Chancellor told reporters: 'We have just commissioned a review of pensions adequacy, so whether people are saving enough for retirement, and also the state pension age. 'As life expectancy increases it is right to look at the state pension age to ensure that the state pension is sustainable and affordable for generations to come. 'That's why we have asked a very experienced set of experts to look at all the evidence.' The review was announced by the Department for Work and Pensions on Monday and will involve an independent report, led by Dr Suzy Morrissey, on specified factors relevant to the Review of State Pension Age along with the Government Actuary's Department's examination of the latest life expectancy projections data. Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: 'There will be many factors that need to be assessed during this review of the state pension age. 'One of the most important will be healthy life expectancy which according to the latest data hovers in the early 60s. 'This means the reality is that many people will face real difficulties in continuing to work until their mid-to-late 60s and could face a sizeable income gap while they wait to receive their state pension.' Rachel Vahey, head of public policy at AJ Bell, said: 'An ageing population places an increasing burden on taxpayers, with state pension costs rising and fewer working-age taxpayers to cover the cost. 'Future governments will hope that an improved economy and growing tax receipts will help alleviate some of the pressure. But that can't be guaranteed and there needs to a be a credible plan for maintaining affordability.'
Daily Mail
11-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Cancer patient's powerful lesson about life breaks Aussies' hearts as she publicly reveals she's been given months to live: 'Things that end up being the biggest of all'
A brave woman who has spent 15 years battling an aggressive brain cancer has opened up about the harrowing ordeal after being told she has months to live. Anna Tarrant, 41, has spent weeks in hospital and is now confined to a wheelchair, requiring 24/7 care. The Sydneysider was a fit and healthy 26-year-old when doctors first found a cancerous tumour the size of a small lemon on her brain in October 2010. She has since undergone five major brain surgeries, radiotherapy, and countless stints of chemotherapy and treatment. With her cancer now immune to chemotherapy, Ms Tarrant's hopes of beating cancer were dealt a cruel blow last month when doctors took her off a trial drug, leaving her with no more treatment options. She took to local Facebook page Mosman Living to share confronting details of the setback and seek advice as she prepares for the inevitable. 'I was informed there's nothing they can do for me anymore, my cancer is just too aggressive and the cells are growing way too quickly,' she wrote. 'I've been given months to live and I've never felt so scared or alone. 'My heart has shattered into a million pieces,' she said, revealing she had an 'extremely short life expectancy of months'. She shared a powerful lesson for the community where she's lived her entire life. 'Life is too short and in the end it's the little gestures and things that end up being the biggest of all,' she said. 'Enjoy every moment of sunshine in our little slice of heaven and try and focus on what you do have, not what you don't.' The candid post was inundated with hundreds of messages of support and advice from Mosman locals. 'This is a such as honest and heartbreaking post to read,' one wrote. Another added: 'Oh Anna, my heart aches reading your word... Thank you for your courage in sharing something so raw and real, your strength and honestly are deeply moving.' The latest update on Ms Tarrant's GoFundMe page posted on June 17 states that she is paralysed and needs 24-7 care. 'I've always been positive, kind, generous, caring, thoughtful and loving and full of sunshine,' Ms Tarrant wrote. 'Watching your body slowly dying and failing you physically is extremely traumatic and my heart is completely broken I have this terribly debilitating cancer that has stripped me of all my independence and is now continuing to take it away.. my heart is broken.' Ms Tarrant previously worked high-flying corporate job but turned to volunteering after her diminishing brain function meant she could no longer handle a list of hundreds of clients. 'The thing I am most frightened of is not knowing how I am going to deteriorate,' she previously told Daily Mail Australia. 'I am so scared of losing my mental and physical capacity over time.' More than 1,920 new cases of brain cancer are diagnosed in Australia each year, and it is the leading cause of cancer death in children and adults aged under-40. The overall five year survival rate for all types of primary brain tumours is around 36 per cent, according to Cancer Australia.
