Pensions gap condemns women to life of poverty
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Women who retire in the UK are four times less likely to qualify for a full state pension than men, a report is expected to show.
This week, the government report will highlight the discrepancy between the retirement incomes of women and men and detail the extent of poverty among elderly women in Britain.
The study, by the Department for Work and Pensions, is expected to show that 2.2 million women do not receive a basic state pension as a result of low wages or not having a job. For every £1 a man receives from a pension, a woman receives only 32p, government figures show.
Ministers are considering root-and-branch reform of the pension system to address inequalities between retired women and men. Women miss out on pensions because they often take time off work to care for children or other family, which reduces the contributions they can make.
Ministers are discussing ways to "plug the gap" to stop women who take time off work for caring being penalised. After pressure from groups such as Age Concern, they are considering "crediting women in" to cover missing contributions and ensure they have a consistent payments history.
Of the 3.3 million people who are receiving pension credit, 2.18 million are women. Men get on average £50-£100 a week more private pension income than women of the same age. And 1.3 million of the 1.9 million people lifted out of poverty by pension credit are women.
Harriet Harman, the constitutional affairs minister and former secretary of state for social security, said: "We should be recognising it where women are making a contribution doing unpaid work."
A review of pensions policy by the former head of the CBI Adair Turner will be published next month.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments