I want to make a couple of points about pensions in the round as we come to the end of the debate. We are talking about public sector pensions, but it is worth remembering that our state pension is one of the lowest in Europe; the replacement rate it provides is very low by European standards, so we cannot talk about public sector pensions on their own in that context.
Equally, we have to be very careful that we do not get into a race to the bottom in respect of private sector pensions. There are real problems with private provision in the UK—not caused, of course, by the previous Government. I had to laugh at some of the contributions from Government Members. The single biggest negative impact on private sector pensions in the UK was the Thatcher Government’s removal of employers’ ability to mandate the work force to be in an occupational pension scheme. That was the beginning of the slippery slope, alongside holidays in pension contributions taken by employers. This rewriting of history by Government Members is ludicrous.
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