Dr Suzy Morrissey, who is carrying out an independent review of the state pension age at the Government's request, has warned that a retirement age of 70 is "not unusual" in other countries. Speaking on the BBC's Money Box programme, she responded to a question about whether "70 will be the new 66".
She said: "Certainly we have got age increases happening, and so we know that we're likely to get to 68 in due course. So, anything is possible in terms of any increasing. 70 is not unusual in other countries."
Global retirement ages
Many countries have a retirement age in the late 60s, with some increasing their access age to 70. Denmark is on course to rise to 70 by 2040, while Libya currently has a retirement age of 70 for both men and women.
The state pension age is currently moving up gradually from 66 to 67, in one-month increments between April 2026 and April 2028.
Questions of fairness
The BBC programme spoke to people in Liverpool about their concerns over the state pension age, including whether it is fair for people who have worked in different jobs to have the same state pension age. People who have worked in more manual labour roles may not be able to continue in these jobs into their late 60s and beyond.
Dr Morrissey said she has heard similar worries from people she has spoken to in her review work to date. She said: "People expressed concerns about different jobs, as the people in your interviews did, and health status. And there is definitely a question there about how fair that would feel if you have worked in a physical job compared to those of us who do less physical work."
'Extremely challenging'
However, she said it would add a lot more complexity to move to a system with varied retirement ages. Dr Morrissey told the programme: "There is a reason that we use a single state pension age, notwithstanding the challenges of doing so. Imagine trying to define the types of jobs that would be eligible for a reduction, and how long would one have to have done that job, you know?
"Or regionally, is it where you were born or how long you've lived in a particular place? Extremely challenging, I think, to find criteria that people would consider fair."
Report timing and future changes
Dr Morrissey said her report is unlikely to be published before spring 2027. Once she has concluded her independent study, Labour will consider her findings and then decide if any changes are needed to the current state pension increase plans.
Laws are also on the books for another increase, from 67 to 68, between April 2044 and April 2046. There has been discussion of bringing forward this timetable. An independent review commissioned for the 2023 review of the state pension age recommended a timetable between 2037 and 2039. You can check your state pension age on the Government website.
