… and 15million workers aren’t putting any cash aside for their old age

AROUND 15 million workers face a bleak retirement because they are failing to save into a pension.

The City watchdog said workers who ‘ look forward to leisure’ in their retirement will find the state pension ‘is not enough to maintain living standards’.

In a study of 13,000 people’s finances, its researchers found almost a third of workers were not paying into a pension plan – despite Government efforts to boost savings.

Many face the prospect of working into their 70s or 80s unless they start putting money aside.

Andrew Bailey, chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority, which conducted the research, said that while saving for retirement ‘isn’t easy for people who have to make ends meet today’ it was very important.

‘Many are not saving enough for their retirement,’ he told the Daily Mirror. ‘While the state pension is a hugely important part of retire- ment provision... for many people it is not enough to maintain living standards.’

The FCA poll found many people woefully under estimated how long they would need to fund their retirement. Around 7 per cent of 55 to 64-yearolds expect to live to 90 yet medical research shows half of them will reach the milestone.

Around 30 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds have a pension, with the figure rising to 61 per cent for people aged between 25 and 34 and 71 per cent for those aged 35 to 44. The proportion rose to 77 per cent for savers aged 45 to 54.

Official figures in September revealed that the total membership of workplace pensions in the UK had hit 39.2 million. That was the highest level on record and a 17 per cent jump compared with 2015 when the figure was 33.5 million, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The increase has been driven by a Government policy forcing companies to pay into a pension plan automatically on behalf of their staff. Under so- called auto- enrolment rules introduced in 2012, staff have to opt out of a pension if they do not want one, rather than in. More than eight million people are started savings for retirement for the first time as a result.