Pensioner numbers tipped to ‘soar by a THIRD’ to 15million over next decade and rise 11 times faster than young population
Society will also become more diverse with non-whites predicted to make up 21 per cent by 2030
THE NUMBER of OAPs in Britain is tipped to soar by a THIRD to 15 million over the next decade.
And the staggering rise will be 11 times faster than the rest of the population.
Experts at the Institute of Public Policy Research said Britain was at a “demographic tipping point” as people live longer than ever before.
And they claimed it will leave huge funding gaps for the Government – from the NHS to social care the state pension and old-age benefits.
The NHS may need at least another £9 billion a year by the end of the 2020s.
The IPPR claimed the ‘pensioner population’ will surge 33 per cent to 15.4 million by 2030.
Meanwhile the rise in the number of 16 to 64 year-olds will be just 3 per cent.
The IPPR said the number of over 85s alone will double to 3 million.
One in three babies born in 2016 can expect to live beyond the age of 100, the IPPR adds.
Mathew Lawrence, research fellow, said: “Brexit is only the firing gun on a decade of disruption.
“With the number of pensioners set to sky rocket in the 2020s, big challenges are coming down the track.
“Without reform a rapidly ageing population will squeeze funding for the NHS and social care, increase loneliness and make ensuring pensions are decent and sustainable a big priority.”
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As well as growing older, society will become more diverse. Non-whites will make up 21 per cent of the population by 2030, the IPPR predicts.
The predictions come in an end-of-year ‘Future Proof’ report. The IPPR also warns the gap between rich and poor will widen over the next decade.
Take home pay for low-income households could be just 2 per cent in total by 2030.
It adds that by 2030 almost 40 per cent of under-40s will be living back at home with their parents – up from 14 per cent now.
It repeats forecasts that Brexit will make the nation poorer, but that stagnation will hit all of the world’s advanced economies.
The IPPR adds that geo-political power will shift east as China claims 17 of the world’s 50 most powerful cities.
BRITAIN IN 2030
Over 65s to soar by 33 per cent to 15.4 million
40% of under 40s to be living with parents
Gap between rich and poor to widen
Non-whites to make up 21% of UK population
More self-employed than public sector workers
Stagnation to hit advanced economies
China to have 17 of world’s 50 most powerful cities