State Pension Age to Be Increased Earlier than Expected

UK Chancellor George Osborne surprised most Brits with his announcement that the government pension age will be raised to 66 years by 2020.

The whole country expected this hike to take place not earlier than in 2026, as planned by the previous Labour government. Despite the public expectation, country’s new Chancellor claimed the government pension age will be increased from 65 to 66 years in 2018-2020.

Mr. Osborne believes that the hike in pension age is the right thing to do because most countries are introducing this change with a view to save budget money. According to estimates of the British Government, the move will help save around £5 billion a year.

Probably, the main idea behind this early rise in government pension is the increased life expectancy in Great Britain. It has grown by almost 10 years in the past decades. As such, in the post-WWII period it reached 66 and 72 years for men and women respectively. These days average life expectancy is 77 and 81 years for men and women.