§ Mr. ThurnhamTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of the additional cost of a flexible decade of retirement between the ages of 60 and 70, compared with the Government's proposals to equalise state pension age at 65.
§ Mr. LilleyThe Government's plans already allow for indefinite flexibility after state pension age. From 2010, people will receive a 10 per cent. increase in their state pension for every year that they defer drawing it. To allow people to claim their full state pension from age 60, even if the flexibility were limited to a decade, would cost £13 billion a year more by 2030 than age 65.