Pension Inequalities and Policy Responses

Pension policies are an increasingly important topic in British elections. This paper discusses what the first year under a Labour government has meant for pension policy, drawing on the Labour Party’s pre-election pledges, before critically considering future directions of pension policy and areas not currently addressed by the Labour government, or where policies could go further. The paper argues that structural inequalities in the labour market and the pension system persist, with consistent evidence of gender and ethnic inequalities in labour market participation, the nature of such participation, pension outcomes, and a range of financial and non-financial wellbeing indicators. Placing adequacy and fairness at the heart of Labour policy can send a strong message on the government’s part of understanding the complex interactions of opportunities and costs across the lifecourse for individuals from diverse backgrounds, and anticipating further demographic and socio-economic changes in the British society and economy.