Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the equalisation of the State Pension on the (a) incomes, (b) well-being and (c) health outcomes of people affected.
Changes to State Pension age were made over a series of Acts by successive governments from 1995 onwards, following public consultations and extensive debates in both Houses of Parliament.
We do not hold any recorded information of an impact assessment that informed the rises in State Pension age of the Pensions Act 1995. However, the White Paper ‘Equality in State Pension Age’ 1993 contains some consideration of impacts. The document can be found here http://qna.files.parliament.uk/qna-attachments/1084399/original/Equality%20in%20State%20Pension%20age%201993.pdf
The 2006 impact assessment 'The Gender Impact of Pension Reform' considered a wide range of reforms to both state and private pension systems, including proposed State Pension age changes, and can be found here:
The Department has carried out a number of impact assessments to consider how new regulatory legislation impact those affected by the changes. These include some mention of the impacts on income and health. Please see:
The 2007 Regulatory Impact Assessment can be found here: https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20121204130650/http:/www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/pensions-bill-ria.pdf
The Pensions Act 2011 Impact Assessment can be found here:
http://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pensions-act-2011-impact-assessment
The Pensions Act 2014 Impact Assessment can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pensions-act-2014-impact-assessments-may-2014