At a panel discussion held at the House of Lords earlier today, specialist insurer – Partnership – and the International Longevity Institute – UK (ILC-UK) led a debate to discuss whether as a nation we are being too optimistic about post-retirement life expectancy.
15% fewer 90-year olds and life expectancy projects being revised down:
The debate stems from analysis of the 2011 Census data by Richard Willets (Director of Longevity – Partnership) which highlighted the fact there are 30,000 (or 15%) fewer people aged in their 90s than estimates based on previous censuses might suggest. This trend has also been noticed in America where the 2004 US Census projected that there would be 114,000 centenarians in 2010 but in actuality, there were only 53,364.
Serious issues around longevity statistics were further highlighted when the ONS November 2013 Population Projections Data was released (click here). It showed that life expectancy for someone aged 65 in 2012-13 had been repeatedly revised down – and now stood materially below figures projected by the ONS in recent years.
Impact on Society:
With the Government increasing the state pension age in line with longevity projections based on the Census, it is vital that this issue is examine to determine whether this change is due to environmental issues such as particularly cold winters or a more long-term trend.
The event - which forms part of the #PopulationPatterns Seminar Series – brought together experts from the Department of Work & Pensions, Office of National Statistics (ONS) and Barnett Waddingham to debate this important issue.
Baroness Greengross, Chief Executive, ILC-UK, said:
“With society living progressively longer, Central and Local Government regularly uses data projections to determine how to allocate resources and determine when people should become eligible for certain types of support such as the state pension. Today’s debate around the missing 90 year olds clearly highlights the value and role of rigorous analysis and expert insight when seeking to understand the real impact of longevity on critical issues of social policy which is at the heart of our population patterns series.”
Richard Willets, Partnership’s Director of Longevity, commented:
“While we naturally want to be optimistic about life expectancy, it is vital that the statistics that are used to determine public spending, state pension age and retirement income are as accurate as projections can be. Analysis of the 2011 Census and the ONS population projections suggest that this may not be the case and that we need to seriously consider how we collect and use this data.
“Today’s event brought together experts in this field to discuss the findings and debate whether this is a ‘relatively minor short term blip’ or whether this is a developing trend that will have a significant impact on society. [While each organisation saw the issue slightly differently but there was general agreement that exploring this topic is vitally important going forward.”
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