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Three in five people aged 60 to 65 say State Pension age increase is unfair – Standard Life

Women in their 60s were more likely than men to say the State Pension age was unfair, with 60% of women agreeing compared to 43% of men. 

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Three in five people aged 60 to 65 say State Pension age increase is unfair – Standard Life
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Three in five people aged 60 to 65 said the rise in State Pension age to 67 is unfair, according to research from the Standard Life Centre for the Future of Retirement.

Women in their 60s were more likely than men to say the State Pension age was unfair, with 60% of women agreeing compared to 43% of men. 

Half of women in this age group said they felt under pressure because of the increase, compared to less than a third of men. 

Seven in 10 people approaching State Pension age said the threshold should have stayed the same, even as life expectancy rose. 

Only 23% supported raising it in line with life expectancy. 

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More than seven in 10 women believed the age should not increase, while 62% of men agreed.

When asked to choose, 67% said it was unfair to change the State Pension age after people had started working, while 24% thought the government should be able to raise the age to protect taxpayers. 

Men were more likely than women to back the Government’s right to increase the age to protect taxpayers.

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Only half of UK adults aged 18 to 65 said they thought the State Pension would be available for everyone when they reached retirement, and just 29% expected the Triple Lock to remain in place.

Catherine Foot, director of the Standard Life Centre for the Future of Retirement, said: “As our population ages, the country is faced with fiscal challenges that involve difficult trade-offs. 

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“The State Pension is often central to these debates, but our research shows how strongly people feel about changes to the State Pension age.

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“A majority of those most immediately affected by the ongoing increase to 67 believe the change is unfair and do not support further rises linked to life expectancy.”

Foot added: “This is particularly true for women, who are significantly less likely than men to have adequate private retirement savings.

“If further increases to the State Pension age are considered, policymakers will need to ensure people have sufficient opportunity to prepare, and should also take action to minimise the impact on those with lower savings and fewer options to extend their working lives.”

She said: “As policymakers consider the future of the State Pension and wider pensions adequacy, it is vital that the public’s views are heard, alongside expert perspectives. 

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“Deliberative democracy – such as Citizens’ Assemblies – can help people engage with these complex social and fiscal issues, giving policymakers a better understanding of the priorities that matter most to ordinary people. 

“Integrating citizen participation into future pension reforms could help support more sustainable long-term decision-making and reduce resentment around further reforms.”

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