Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to support people who wish to continue working over state pension age.

Since the abolishment of the Default Retirement Age, most people can work for as long as they want and are able to. We know that age diversity within a workforce is the right thing and can bring benefits to business. Therefore, we are working across government, with employers, and with the Business Champion for Older Workers, Andy Briggs, to advocate for more diverse, inclusive and multigenerational workforces.

In addition, the DWP has signed the Age-friendly Employer Pledge, a nationwide programme run by the Centre for Ageing Better to promote age inclusive working practices. The Help to Grow site on gov.uk also provides advice and guidance to businesses on employing older workers.

The government wants to encourage people to plan more actively for later life and provide support to help them make important decisions about extending their working lives and reducing the risk of pensioner poverty. An enhanced digital Mid-life MOT offer went live on 5th July 2023 to ensure more people can access targeted online guidance regarding their finances, health and career.

At Spring Budget 2023, the Government also announced that it would make changes to the limits on tax-relieved pension savings, abolishing the lifetime allowance and increasing the annual allowance from £40,000 to £60,000. These changes will help incentivise highly skilled and highly experienced individuals at the top of their professions to remain in the labour market which will help grow the economy while increasing the knowledge and experience of the UK’s labour force.

The New State Pension was introduced in April 2016 with the aim of providing a clearer, sustainable foundation for private saving. The full rate of £203.85 per week (2023/24) was set above the Standard Minimum Guarantee level of Pension Credit, removing disincentives to working beyond State Pension Age. In addition, once over State Pension Age, people are exempt from paying National Insurance contributions if they carry on working as an employee.