To cry over state pension age speculation rise to 75-81

[feellikeahugefailure]

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/georgeosborne/12179375/Work-till-youre-75-or-even-81-under-Government-review-of-state-pension-age.html

Where has it all gone wrong? My parents could buy a home one one income for 3 times annual wage. Dad retired at 55, mum never needed to work and has been claiming a state pension for over a decade since 60. I do a similar job to my dad.

Where I live the average house price is 13 times my wage. My pension I've been paying into for over 10 years will if I keep paying into it for almost 40 more years give me 2'000 a year if it does averagely and 1'000 if it does poorly, and it probably will do poorly. Then no state pension until I'm about to drop dead. Can't afford a house or to put money away for retirement.

[ArmchairTraveller]

When I was born, the average life expectancy in the UK was around 71-2 years.
So the pension was supposed to cover around a decade or so, likewise there wasn't a huge cost for geriatric care both medical and housing.
Houseprices are insane, I doubt either of my children will own a house unless they inherit ours and share.

[Secretlove]

What jobs will people be actually doing at that age? There is such ageism in the workplace. In my profession you can't change jobs or roles after the age of 40. You are written off.

[BarbaraofSeville]

When the state pension came in people started working between 14 and 16 and many men at least didn't even make it to retirement age.

Now more people go to university and don't start working full time and paying income tax until early to mid 20s and life expectancy has increased significantly. The current retirement age is simply unsustainable and the current generation of 50-70 year olds have been comparatively lucky in lots of financial respects compared with older or younger people.

[cleaty]

Most people will not be well enough to work at 75-81.

[Limer]

House price inflation is due to undersupply coupled with massive population increases.

The country has never been able to sustain pensioners having 20+ years of retirement, so as expected lifespans increase, so must working lives. When pensions were introduced, retirement age was 65 (for men), because most men had died by age 68. Many never made retirement in the first place.

[HermioneJeanGranger]

People used to leave work at 16, work until they were 60, retire and then most died before they reached 70.

Now, people are at school until 18, most don't work full-time until after university (so, 21 or 22), but they want to retire at the same age as their parents, even though they'll likely live much longer and will have worked less.

People are living longer, working less (as a general rule) - how is the state pension supposed to sustain everyone for that long? It's an extra (roughly) twenty years of pension per person, when those people have, as a general rule, worked for 5-6 years less to start off with.

The money has to come from somewhere.

[NeedACleverNN]

The problem with also upping the retirement age is that some elderly are going to continue working even if they don't feel up to it. Means less jobs for the younger generation.

Fucks up everything

[Buckinbronco]

People of my generation are surely likely to live until 100 or thereabouts (I am 32) I don't understand why retiring at 60 would be desirable or realistic- surely that's pretty entitled? Work 40 years to look after yourself and expect the state to look after you for the next 40?

You'll be in far better health at 80 than 80 year olds are now

[MigGril]

I anticipate working until I'm at least 70, where as my dad retired at 60 and MIL, FIL on full pension at 50 although he could no longer work due to ill health all though in theory Coulld have retrained. All have good pensions yet complain about being on fixed incomes but own homes and are earning enough to be paying tax. My dad also goes on multiple holidays. IL's spend there money on other things.

I see us being paying a mortgage on a small house, yes we're lucky we got on the property ladder. Until we retirement, but at least it's ours. I don't see the fancy holidays in our future either. I try and take pleasure in life little things and realise that we are way better off then a lot of other people. Working when your older isn't too bad I see me doing part time long after 70, as both my dad and anute volunteer why this couldn't be some paid work I don't see why not. It helps keep you going active and a part of the community all positive things. Now just to change employers attedues to the idea.

[Palomb]

There are so many jobs a person could pysiciay do in to their 80's - nursing, police, teaching, driving and loads more.

I'm praying for a lottery win.

[Rinoachicken]

Surely thought he majority of people won't be physically capable of still working at 70?

[BathtimeFunkster]

People are living longer

Wealthy people are living longer.

Life expectancy varies enormously between rich boroughs and poor ones.

The idea that everyone is living longer is pretty much a lie.

We also have an underemployment problem and lack of opportunities for the young.

Forcing people to work until they are slowing down with old age is not a clever way to deal with an ageing population.

We might have more 80 year olds now than we did before, but that doesn't magically mean they are like 60 year olds a few years ago.

[tilliebob]

In a class of kids in my 80's?!

Jog on.

[Buckinbronco]

"Surely thought he majority of people won't be physically capable of still working at 70?"

Do people really think this? All of my grandparents worked until they died (74-76) they died over 20 years ago.

[feellikeahugefailure]

I doubt people in their 30s will live till 100! Life expectancy is going down for many. I think the WW2 children it will have peaked with.

theincidentaleconomist.com/wordpress/life-expectancy-is-going-down-for-many/

I'm just wanting a few years of not working. It does seem like some people have been given an over generous retirement and this means others will never get to retire.

[WhoTheFuckIsSimon]

Well the people I know who are 80 now generally aren't in better health than 80 year olds I knew 30 years ago. They're in just as much pain with arthritis, some are just as confused at times. The difference is they will manage another 20 years in this state rather than a couple. It doesn't mean they're fit for work.

And before someone screams at me I am not being ageist, I am being realistic for the average 80 year old. There will always be exceptions of the odd 85yo who is still playing rugby, walking ten miles a day, going hiking, etc.

[rollonthesummer]

What jobs will people be actually doing at that age?

This really worries me. In classroom teaching, you are pretty much managed out if you are much over 45-too expensive and young managers don't like the fact you might question what they say-those few we had in their late 50s a few years ago (just before PMR took proper hold) were a bit of a laughing stock.

Now, I appreciate my school may be extreme and lots of you might pile in saying, 'there are loads of happy Outstanding post-threshold teachers in their 50/60s at my school who love every minute and will carry on teaching till they're 70,' but it is something that really does concern me!!

[mollie123]

People of my generation are surely likely to live until 100 or thereabouts (I am 32)
good luck with that - maybe a few will

[WhoTheFuckIsSimon]

No way I can do a 13 hour shift stood on my feet in the heat of a labour ward being alert enough and quick enough to make life saving decisions.

There would be no active births for my women as my hips and knees wouldn't stand it, women would have to be on the bed all the time!

I can barely do it now and am planning to leave before im 50. It's killing me physically now.

[BarbaraofSeville]

The idea that everyone is living longer is pretty much a lie

Not necessarily. The working class people who currently become ill or die in their 50/60/70s were the ones that died in accidents in their teens/20s/30s/40s.

Both DP and I come from mining familes and lots of older male relatives and their colleagues either died or were injured as young men, or suffered industrial illnesses and died at what would currently be considered very young. My grandad died in his early 40s, younger than I am now.

It absolutely is the case that on average, all social classes are living longer than they did 20/30/40 years ago.

[Cataline]

Palomb- the thought of anyone working as police, nurse or teacher into their 70s let alone their 80s is a bit far fetched don't you think?

[Fourormore]

If retirement age goes up to 75-81 then does that mean we could get 40 or 50 or even 60 year mortgages? Sure the interest would be insane but perhaps more affordable?

The cost of living at the moment means we can't afford to put away for a pension so we'll be working til we drop anyway.

[feellikeahugefailure]

If retirement age goes up to 75-81 then does that mean we could get 40 or 50 or even 60 year mortgages? Sure the interest would be insane but perhaps more affordable?

Please god no! The availability to borrow a shit load of money is mainly what has put up house prices in the first place. This would just put them up more.

I can see us having 100 year intergenerational mortgages and the average home 30 times the average wage in the future. :(

[HermioneJeanGranger]

Yes, we have more eighty year olds, and the money to support them has to come from somwhere. Or do people just expect to retire at 60, and live off the government pension for thirty years?

People used to live off pensions for 5 years or so, if they even reached retirement. That's not the case nowadays, so where is the extra money going to come from?