CARE OF THE ELDERLY (Hansard, 4 May 1971)

§ Mr. Robert Edwards (Bilston)

I beg to move, That leave be given to bring in a Bill to create a public department with special responsibilities for advising and assisting elderly persons; to extend and improve the services provided by local authorities for elderly persons; to amend the law regarding the age of retirement from employment; and to make other provisions for the care of the elderly. Seventy years ago, 6 per cent. of the population of this country were of retirement age. In 1956, 15 per cent. of the population were of retirement age. Last year, 20 per cent. of the population were of retirement age. It is estimated that by 1981 40 per cent. of the population of this country will be of retirement age. These developments create a problem which will put a great strain on our economy and unprecedented claims on our medical and hospital services. There is urgent need for a special Government Department to deal with these new problems which are constantly arising, and will always be with us, due to the increase in the expectation of life.

Every day, 1,000 additional elderly people reach retirement age. It is essential that we look at this problem in depth. We must have a good look at the whole question of the age of retirement. In some cases, it will be necessary to lower the retirement age, and in others, to raise it. In industries like steel, coal mining and heavy chemicals it will, I suggest, be important to lower the age of retirement. In light industries and in clerical activities, the retirement age could well be raised. There is no medical ground for the present arbitrary retirement age.

Bearing in mind that it is likely that 40 per cent. of our population will be of retirement age by 1981, we have to consider the massive drain on our labour force which this will entail. Often enough, arbitrary retirement leads to arbitrary death. We are losing the talent, craftsmanship, skills and wisdom of hundreds of thousands of good people who have no need to retire and who want to continue to do useful work for the community. A growing proportion of our national wealth will have to be allocated to deal with the problem of retirement.

1179 We need new facilities for training retired people so that they may still, in a part-time capacity, do useful work. A lot of this kind of advice is being given on a voluntary basis in many localities. Many progressive authorities have established amenities and facilities for elderly people, but many more do very little for them.

There is the problem of illnesses which arise from old age—near deafness, difficulty with eyes and feet, diabetes, arthritis, and rheumatism. We do not do enough research into the illnesses of old age. We tend to treat the problem as a social nuisance rather than as one which must be considered in depth to see how we can help older people to enjoy a happy and secure evening of life. Far too often hundreds of thousands of old people retire unwillingly. They suffer from loneliness and often go into the wilderness of poverty and ill health. The miserable lives which they lead can be avoided by proper planning and an extension of local authority services. If necessary, mandatory legislation should be introduced to make the best services the average in local authorities.

My proposed Bill covers many aspects of the problem of retirement and old age, and I hope that the House, which is always generous in these matters, will grant me leave to introduce it.