Pensions Reform

I will not give way. I want to give the House some good news. Our life expectancy will have increased by about an hour and a half during the debate. Debate is a very healthy thing, after all. Thirdly, as a result of developments spanning many decades, the current state pension system has become very complex. It delivers unfair outcomes, especially for women and carers. Finally, if we maintained the current indexation arrangements, the basic state pension might be worth only £35 a week by 2050 in today’s earnings terms, and more than 70 per cent. of pensioner households could be eligible for pension credit. That, of course, was never the Government’s intention. I believe that the proposals in the White Paper address the challenges identified by the Pensions Commission. Crucially, they do so in a way that promotes personal responsibility and achieves outcomes that are fairer, simpler, affordable and sustainable. The introduction of personal accounts combined with compulsory minimum employer contributions and automatic enrolment will help to embed a new pensions savings culture in which future generations can take increasing responsibility for building their retirement savings.