Financial warning issued over 'unjustifiable' state pension age delay with 'UK citizens at risk'

The government has announced its decision to not immediately raise the pension age to 68.

However, instead of scrapping the pension age in the face of delayed rises in life expectancy, the work and pensions secretary, Mel Stride, said a review will take place in the future where a decision will then be made. It is understood that a decision will be made in 2026 after the general election.

The government is required by law to review any planned changes to the pension age system every six years. News that the pension age could still rise in the near future has struck a chord with many experts and members of the public.

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Reacting to the news, Andy Barr, CEO and Personal Finance Expert at Alert, said: “Following the Spring Budget, in which the Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, suggested bringing the state pension age increase forward to between 2034 and 2036, prospective pensioners will be pleased to hear that this’ll now likely be delayed to 2044. On top of this, the removal of the cap on Pension Lifetime Allowance – which has been frozen since 2020 – has provided small signs of relief for current pensioners.

“Bringing forward the age increase could leave millions of low-income workers, who’re set to retire in the near future, in poverty. It’s important that people are made aware about any increase in pension age as early as possible, to allow those affected to financially plan accordingly.”

Sir Steve Webb, a former pensions minister who is now a partner at consultants LCP said: "It is welcome that the Government has taken account of the big slowdown in life expectancies in recent years and has held off any further increases in