Long-term thinking needed to give everyone a good later life

“Different generations in the UK have faced different economic and social circumstances. This has affected their chances to prosper over their lifetimes. In every generation there are stark inequalities between the haves and have nots.  

“Many of the issues identified in this report are the result of decades of political short termism and a failure by successive governments to respond to Britain’s changing population structure. We need Government to better answer the question of what kind of society we want to live in and how we should pay for it.

“We must tread carefully if we frame challenges in terms of intergenerational fairness. Comparing generations risks playing a game of statistical averages which could distract us from the very real poverty and disadvantage experienced by people across all ages.”