State pensions are the lowest in OECD countries.
The UK state pension is not big enough to support the bare minimum standard of living for a single person, according to a new report. And it warns that a quarter of employees are not on track to be able to afford it.
The Retirement Living Standards report published by the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association estimates that a single pensioner needs £10,900 annual income after tax to support what it defines as the minimum standard of living. That works out at around £209.60 a week. Last month Believe in Scotland had the economic consultancy firm Scotianomics work out the minimum living standard for a Scottish pensioner and we calculate that they would require a pension of at least £200.00 a week. This new report from PLSA therefore backs up our findings.
The UK’s full basic state pension – the worst in the developed world according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development – is just £137.60 a week, or £7,155 a year.
The new UK state pension for men born after April 1951 and women born after April 1953 is £179.60, although you might receive less depending on your National Insurance record. The new full pension works out at £9,339 a year, still significantly less than the suggested minimum required but remember most pensionors don’t get that much.