Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to reduce the pension age for ambulance workers to meet the pension age for (a) police and (b) fire service employees.

There are no plans at present to equalise the normal pension ages (NPAs) of all emergency services workforces.

NHS Pension Scheme members do not have to work to the scheme’s NPA to claim their retirement benefits. Flexible retirement options enable members to choose when to retire. Voluntary Early Retirement allows staff to fully retire up to 10 years earlier than the NPA, with an actuarially reduced pension due to the pension being in payment for longer. Alternatively, partial retirement allows members to draw down some or all of their pension while continuing to work and build up further pension benefits. Even when taken before normal pension age, NHS Pension Scheme benefits give exceptional value to staff and can provide for a comfortable living in retirement.