Sir Tony Blair has called for the state pension to be abolished because it is “outdated, rigid and increasingly unaffordable”.
In a new report, the Tony Blair Institute (TBI) urged the Government to replace the benefit with a new system called Lifespan Fund, which would require some people to work an extra five years to receive the same payout.
The former prime minister’s think tank also said ministers should ditch the triple lock, scrap pension credit and remove the state retirement age in a raft of reforms that would save an estimated £66bn a year by 2070.
Official figures show the number of retirees will rise from 12.6 million today to nearly 19 million by 2070, increasing state pension spending to almost 8pc of GDP and making reform “unavoidable”, it argued.
The TBI said the triple lock had become a “long-run cost escalator” and urged the Pensions Commission to broker a pre-election pact among the major parties, enabling whoever forms the next government to remove it from 2030.
Later Life Ambitions (LLA) has warned that any future reform of the State Pension must protect older people from poverty, following calls from Sir Tony Blair to scrap the State Pension triple lock.
The Tony Blair Institute has proposed replacing the State Pension with a new “Lifespan Fund” and moving from the triple lock to a smoothed earnings link from 2030.
Sally Tsoukaris, General Secretary of the Civil Service Pensioners’ Alliance and a spokesperson for Later Life Ambitions, said:
“Any reform of the State Pension must begin with a simple principle: no older person should be pushed into poverty.
“The triple lock remains an important safeguard while many pensioners are struggling with food, energy, housing and care costs. Removing it without a credible replacement would risk making life harder for people who are already under pressure.
“LLA believes any future system must be underpinned by a Minimum Income Guarantee, linked to the real cost of living a decent and dignified life in later years.”
LLA’s Budget for Later Life calls for the State Pension and related benefits to meet a Minimum Income Guarantee for all older people, covering essentials such as housing, energy, food, water, transport, personal care, clothing, communications and participation in community life. LLA says this guarantee should be reviewed annually to reflect changing costs.
