Gordon Lishman‚ Director-General of Age Concern England said:

“Adair Turner's suggestion that the state pension age could be raised to 70 for university graduates is an interesting addition to the debate but it is far from clear how such reform would work in practice. A university degree does not guarantee a retirement free from poverty and the Government must ensure there is a full public debate before such major decisions are made.

“By failing to scrap mandatory retirement ages in the workplace however‚ the Government has already fallen at the first hurdle. Making workers who are forced out of employment at 65 wait until 70 for their state pension could have devastating consequences. The Government must abolish mandatory retirement ages so that people have the option to work longer and defer their state pension if they want to.

"A complete overhaul of the pensions system is absolutely critical if future generations are to avoid poverty in retirement. Protecting the poorest and achieving fairness for ordinary working people must lie at the heart of pension reform. Through our network of hundreds of groups across the country‚ we will be organising events over the next few months to ensure that people's voices are heard."

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