Change pension regime to lift older people out of poverty, says Euro-MP

3.00.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Mon 15th Sep 2008

Local Euro-MP Liz Lynne has welcomed a plan to restore the link between

the basic state pension and earnings, which calls on the Government to

honour its responsibility to keep pensioners out of poverty. The plan was

outlined in a policy motion backed by the Liberal Democrat Conference in

Bournemouth.

Expressing concern that despite reforms, some three million Britons will

still not be entitled to the full state pension and that its value in

comparison to earnings is now lower than thirty years ago, the motion

calls for security and dignity in retirement for everyone.

Speaking today, Liz Lynne MEP, who is Co-Chair of the European

Parliament's Intergoup on Ageing said:

'I am delighted that we have made a commitment to immediately restore the

link which used to exist between pensions and earnings to halt the

relative decline of the state pension?s value.

'It is a national scandal that the state pension, in its centenary year,

no longer provides the guarantee of a reasonable income into old age.

'I am outraged that 2.2 million of today?s pensioners live in poverty and

so many are dependent on means tested benefits, which many people do not

even know how to claim, just in order to make ends meet.

'Our older people have been neglected for too long. They deserve better

and the Liberal Democrats can make this happen.'

ENDS

Notes:

Liz Lynne MEP authored a key 2007 joint report for the European Parliament

on Social Protection, Social Inclusion and Social Reality Stocktaking

which, amongst other things called for increased sharing of best practice

among EU Member States in the fight against poverty and social exclusion.

Please find the report here:

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+REPORT+A6-2007-0400+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN