19 May 2006
Plans to improve pensions for women are set to feature in the
upcoming pensions White Paper, according to Work and Pensions
Secretary John Hutton.
In a speech to the Fabian Society yesterday, Mr Hutton said that
a "new deal for women" would entail women be given enhanced
national insurance credits. This could mean working for fewer years
to gain the full state pension.
Mr Hutton said that the government's pension proposals, to be
announced in a White Paper next week, would result in an extra
270,000 women being entitled to a full state pension from 2020.
The government is proposing to overhaul the current system of
Home Responsibility Protection. Under this, women can build up
National Insurance contributions, and thus future state pension,
while looking after children or elderly relatives and not working.
Another possibility is that some women may earn an entitlement to
the full state pension after just 30 years of work, instead of 39
years.
Mr Hutton ruled out a new state pension entitlement based on
residency alone, saying that it would be too slow in improving
matters for women currently aged 45 or over. "We simply cannot
afford to miss this key group...That's why at the heart of next
week's reforms will be a new contributory principle that gives
women a fairer entitlement to the basic state pension more
quickly," Mr Hutton said in his speech.
The government has already made it clear that higher state
pensions, with a restored link to national average earnings, will
be introduced - albeit with a later eventual pension age of 68.
Also, a new National Pensions Saving Scheme will be introduced
involving compulsory employer contributions to top up the state
pension.
