Labour's vision for an ageing society
06/08/2008
Ageism (writes Mike O'Brien) has a long history in which older people are seen merely as needy and child like. Shakespeare identified a confident man’s sixth decade as reducing him to “lean and slippered pantaloon” and by his 7th decade, he is in “second childishness … sans teeth, sans eyes.”
Including ageism in the Bill makes clear that tackling discrimination and promoting equality is not just about rights for minorities but rights for the growing numbers of us who are becoming “older people”. We need to ensure that equality is not just something for the young or minority groups, but truly for all.
The reforms we are making to the state pension will make it fairer and more generous, especially to women. With reform, around three- quarters of women reaching state pension age in 2010 will be entitled to a full basic state pension, compared with only one-third now. By 2025, this will have risen to 90%, the same as for men.
Legislation alone is not enough. We need to tackle attitudes to ageing. Age must be recast in terms of equality, opportunity and contribution not discrimination, stagnation and decline. And that’s not just idealistic. The grey pound matters. The post war generation of baby boomers are retiring, many of them on good final salary schemes. Commerce will need to orientate itself away from the youth pound and towards the grey pound.
Politicians too need recognise that only about a third of the 18-24 age group vote, whereas about 80% of people over 65 vote.
We need new answers to big questions – how can we promote flexible
working, encourage participation, improve mobility and access and
build strong communities?
Loneliness is probably the most difficult challenge that we will face in the years to come. After the death of a partner, many have only the TV for companionship, meeting no one for long periods of time.
This is real social exclusion. The Government is seeking to address this through organisations like Linkage Plus. I recently visited a centre in Port Talbot where older people come together for lunch and a chat to establish friendships and contact.
If they were disabled they were brought in by buses. And the important thing was choice - about when they came and when they left. Growing old should not mean being denied choice. By moving towards individual budgets and personalised services we will see a significant change in the role of the Welfare State, with people given their own budget to choose how to provide for themselves. For many this will be liberating, and must be reinforced with dignity through long term care, which the Government is consulting on.
It might also mean choosing to work after normal retirement age – as
1.3 million people already do. Not just to earn some extra money, but
also for the social interaction.
We can encourage flexible working, whether part time work or volunteering, running organisations and being active members of the local community. And older people can bring real advantages to employers too. I was at Heritage Glass in Shrewsbury recently where the oldest salesman is 73 and the youngest is 60. And it’s doing good business because older people sell effectively.
We need to build strong communities – helping people build up new networks of friendship and deal with infirmities through mastering new technology and new opportunities, taking advantage of better health care.
We must begin to free our minds from some of the prejudices about
ageing, create new life chances for people, and in the decades to
come recognise that some of the most happiest years of our life will
be spent after the age of 65.
Your views? Email: editorial@maturetimes.co.uk
YOU RESPOND
Pensions Minister Mike O’Brien’s homily is merely cynical hypocrisy when he writes: ‘We must begin to free our minds from some of the prejudices about ageing, create new life chances for people, and in the decades to come recognise that some of the most happiest years of our life will be spent after the age of 65’.
He must first free the minds of his DWP colleagues from their prejudice against half the expatriate pensioners, 500,000 people overwhelmingly in the major Commonwealth countries who are denied annual uprating, their pensions frozen for all time at the amount which applied when first they qualified or emigrated as existing pensioners.
Brian Havard, Australia (Full text in our Readers Say section)
I agree with Mike O’Brien’s speech; it’s difficult not to. My question is, why have our politicians waited until the last minute to recommend that we ‘start’ thinking about these demographic and socio-economic changes? Where was that leadership 10 years ago when there was time and money to make policy changes – something there isn’t now. Where was that leadership even two years ago?
Joyce Glasser, London (Full text in our Readers Say section)
Great words about ageism and discrimination, but does he mean it?
Why are the staff of older peoples organisations nearly all teenagers who have just started out in life and controlled by executives who in many cases are retired ex Social Service personnel.
He speaks about the baby boomers: a great number of those have now retired and in many cases like to rule older people and are in receipt of their first pension at age 55.
These people have no concept what it is like to have their pension reduced annually, food prices rising and heating just about impossible to cope with.
Just look at the people who attend all the conferences on older people. I recently attended one in Newcastle and I reckon there was only seven genuine pensioners out of about 200 who attended, they talk about us not with us. It was like feathering their own nest first.
Look at PCT board meetings - another group who talk about us. Older people's partnership boards are run by middle aged personnel, we just go along so that they can tick the box. I don't mind him carrying out a review - BGOP it is in sore need of it, no real statement of account for the past three years - but please do not disband the Older Peoples Advisory Group.
Ken Brown, Chairman NEOPAG