This week, Britain’s Pension Commission, set up by Britain’s government under the leadership of Adair Turner, published its Pensions White Paper, which represents a strong, rational plan to rebuild Britain’s pension system.
The White Paper offers three main recommendations that seem to have been met with general cross-party approval:
A gradual rise of the pension age from 65 to 68 over a 40-year period.
A pension which rises with earnings, not prices.
A national system of personal retirement accounts from which employees can opt out if they so choose.
This proposal, combined with the British ministers’ general acceptance of the recommendations made by Lord Turner’s commission, represents an important step for PRAs as a means of Social Security and pension reform. Hopefully Britain’s success will lead to a greater national understanding and approval of PRA’s as a viable method of solving Social Security’s pressing problems. Let’s hope the United States follow Britain’s lead!
