Labour: State pension changes will hit 56,000 of Theresa May's constituents
2 min read
More than 55,000 people in Theresa May’s constituency will have to work for longer as a result of the Government’s decision to raise the state pension age, Labour has revealed.
Analysis by the Opposition also found approximately 60,000 people in the seats represented by Work and Pensions Secretary David Gauke and Chancellor Philip Hammond would be hit by the change.
Last month the Government confirmed that the state pension age, which is currently available to those over the age of 66, would increase to 68 from 2037 – seven years earlier than previously planned.
The move means 7.6 million people face an extra year in work.
Labour said 36.9 million people overall were set to work for longer than if the age was held at its current level.
Debbie Abrahams, the Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, said: “Thanks to the Tories increasing the state pension age, 36.9 million people will be forced to work longer, at the same time that evidence indicates life expectancy has stalled in some places and is reducing in others.
“Conservative MPs must explain to the tens of thousands of people in their constituencies, why the burden of Tory austerity is being pushed onto them, while corporations and the richest individuals receive tax breaks.
“Theresa May should answer her 56,547 constituents, and the 36.9 million people across Britain, whose hard-earned retirements are being postponed because of her government.”
Labour has said it will keep the state pension age at 66 while it conducts a review into the system.
Scrapping the increases altogether would cost at least £50bn by 2050, according to forecasts.
Ms Abrahams is set to meet pensioner groups and residents to discuss what Labour’s policy should be.
“Labour will keep the state pension age at 66 and this tour will help us review, as part of our commitment to people powered politics, the pension system, with a view to guaranteeing a secure and healthy retirement for the many, not just the few,” she added.
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