Long-distance

The UK Government’s controversial move to increase the starting pension age to 68 in 2037, seven years earlier than planned, will affect people born between 1970 and 1978.

And our analysis shows 550,902 Scots will be impacted by the change, which also means that in some parts of the country, such as Glasgow, the new pension age will be just five years short of the average life expectancy for men.

David Gauke, the Work and Pensions Secretary, has said the rule changes will save the taxpayer AS average life expectancy is increasing the state pension age keeps rising.

However, it does not take any account of the significant differences in life expectancy across the country, between social classes and also between occupations.

The current National Insurance system makes no allowance for people who will not live long enough to reach state pension age, or who will die soon afterwards.

National Insurance amounts to £ 74 billion by 2046/ 47 and reflect increasing life expectancy.

But critics last night slammed the move.

Sandra White, SNP MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, said: “With well over half a million Scots negatively affected by this change it reveals the vast scale of this worst form of Tory trickery. It is truly shameful more flexibility in state pension age: perhaps with a flexible band of ages at which the pension could start, or perhaps allowing people to take their state pension at a lower age, either because they are seriously ill or because they have worked for more than 50 years. People might be allowed to start their pension between the ages of 65 and 70 – perhaps even with the rate they receive being adjusted for early access.

This would be much fairer to more disadvantaged people, allowing them a choice they are currently denied.

There might also be earlier receipt for people who have, say, 50 years’ worth of National Insurance contributions. For example, if they had left school at 16 and contributed for 50 years, perhaps they could get their pension at age 66.

At the moment, the state pension is flexible only for those who are healthy and wealthy enough not to need to take it at state pension age.