Britain pays out the worst state pension in the developed world
The UK pays retirees the worst state pension of any country in the developed world, official figures show, as Brits currently under the age of 30 are warned they could have to wait until they’re 70 to receive anything at all.
The basic payout of £122.30 a week in Britain is the least generous in the West — worth just 29 percent of average earnings, according to the latest figures from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
The report shows that in Poland the state pension is equivalent to 39 percent of average earnings, while Germany and France offer 51 percent and 75 percent respectively.
The Netherlands, Portugal, Italy and Austria all pay state pensions equivalent to more than 90 percent of average earnings. In Mexico, an emerging rather than developed economy, pensioners receive 29.6 percent of average earnings from the state.
The Government Actuary’s Department has projected that unless action is taken the state pension fund will run out in 2035 thanks to the strain caused by Britain’s ageing population.
It has also predicted that the state pension age will reach 70 by the end of the 2050s, and 71 by the end of the 2060s, affecting those in the UK currently under the age of 30.
Malcolm McLean, of retirement specialists Barnett Waddingham, told the Express the qualifying age could rise even more. “It wouldn’t surprise me to see the age go up to 70 before 2050 and conceivably reach 80 or even 85 by the end of the century.”
Former pensions minister Ros Altmann has also warned the situation could get even worse. Altmann told the Telegraph: “Despite the UK offering the lowest state pension in the developed world, the costs have not yet been brought under control. Policymakers face difficult decisions and are likely to need to increase the state pension age further.”
She added that with an ageing population and the decline in generous, final-salary type pension schemes, the UK “faces rising risks of old-age poverty.”
“Beyond the 2030s, the new state pension will be lower than the old system for most people. The lowest paid, predominantly women, will lose out significantly,” she said.
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