UK State Pension Age Increases To 66 From Today
Spain News
Published: 06 October 2020 12:14 CET
Updated: 06 October 2020 14:14 CET
The retirement plans of millions of UK workers have been put on hold after the state pension age was officially increased today.
The age at which men and women will be able to claim will be increased from 65 to 66 and will apply to those born between October 5, 1954, and April 5, 1960.
It now means that anyone born after this will have to wait at least another year to be able to claim their state-paid retirement fund.
As people live longer, further increases to the qualifying age are set to be introduced over the next few years which will see the retirement age rise to 67 in 2028.
However, the increase to 68 which was originally proposed for 2044, has now been brought forward to between 2037 and 2039. A move that will affect those who are currently between the ages of 39 and 47.
The last rise was made in November 2018, which saw the retirement age for women increased from 60 to 65, in line with the qualifying age for men.
The current state pension for retirees is worth £175.20 per week compared to the previous basic state pension which was £134.25 per week.
Anyone who reached the state pension age before April 6, 2016, will only receive the old basic state pension.
To receive the full pension, 35 years of national insurance payments must be made.
Some of the latest changes to the qualifying age have been controversial, particularly for women who have seen the most significant rise.
Campaigners believe that women born before 1950 have been treated unfairly by the government, especially with the rapid changes and the way they were communicated to them.
A recent legal challenge was lost after it was claimed that the move was unlawful discrimination.
With the retirement age set to increase further over time, younger workers have also been encouraged to plan for the future and consider their retirement options.
It comes as Chancellor Rishi Sunak vowed to increase the “triple lock” meaning that the state pension will rise each year in line with the highest average earnings, prices (measured by inflation) or 2.5%.
In a recent radio interview, when asked whether the Triple Lock was safe, Sunak said, “Yes, our manifesto commitments are there and that is very much the legislative position”.
Under the Withdrawal Agreement, UK nationals who are legally resident in the EU prior to December 31, 2020, will not have their pension payments frozen and will continue to receive the annual increase.
