Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the findings of Age UK's report entitled Working Later, Waiting Longer, published in November 2016, what assessment he has made of the merits of reviewing the effect on groups that are most reliant on their state pension of the existing state pension age timetable to April 2028.

The Age UK report concludes that there should be more support to enable older people to continue in employment. Supporting older people to remain in the labour market, and tackling the barriers to them doing so, remains a key priority for Government. In addition to legislative reforms to abolish the default retirement age and extend the right to request flexible working to all employees, we also published a new strategy ‘Fuller Working Lives: A Partnership Approach’ on 2^nd February. The Strategy is crucially led by employers, but also sets out the case for action by individuals, and the role of Government in supporting them in planning their careers and their approach to retirement. The Strategy and supporting evidence base are available at the attached web address: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fuller-working-lives-a-partnership-approach