The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been urged not to proceed with a state pension change that has been described as 'bewildering' and 'unacceptable'. Former pensions minister Sir Steve Webb, who served under both the Liberal Democrats and Conservative Party, has voiced strong opposition to the proposals put forward by the Tony Blair Institute.
Sir Steve, now a legal partner at a law firm, criticized the think tank's call to scrap the triple lock, Pension Credit, and the state pension age in favor of a 'Lifespan Fund'. The proposed system would allow early withdrawals for caring or retraining periods, with pension entitlements based on age, health, and contribution years.
Key Concerns Raised
Sir Steve highlighted several issues with the proposal. 'The first question is: how would the DWP work out the life expectancy of every individual in the country?' he asked. According to the report, this would be done using digital NHS records. 'Leaving aside the huge issue of poor data quality, there is a big issue of privacy here,' he added.
A second issue concerns how low life expectancy resulting from 'lifestyle choices' such as smoking and drinking would be treated. A third question involves how factors like poverty and deprivation would be accounted for. Sir Steve warned: 'We could end up paying different state pensions to people on different sides of the same road, which would be totally unacceptable.'
Call for Stability
Sir Steve concluded: 'This is absolutely not the time to throw the whole thing in the air and replace it with an intrusive system, which would take decades to phase in and which would be bewildering in its complexity.' The TBI released its proposal on Friday, 1 May, sparking widespread debate.
