Summary
Britain’s Answer for Future Retirement Income: Possible Lessons for the United States
• Similarities and differences in U.K–U.S. retirement problems—Both the United Kingdom and the United States face similar budget pressures over their national retirement programs, shortfalls in individual savings, and a rapid decline of traditional private defined benefit pension plans. Although Congress is not about to overhaul U.S. retirement policy, Britain has very significant changes on the table, with the prospect of action later this year: The government is moving to raise the eligibility age for state pensions, create a new mandatory system of private savings accounts, and require both employer and worker contributions to the accounts.
• U.K. presentation in Washington—John Hutton, British secretary of state for work and pensions, outlined the British proposal for pension reform at a June 14 meeting in Washington organized by Retirement Security Project. This article summarizes his presentation and initial reaction by