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Pensions Reform

The hon. Gentleman is in danger of misleading himself—I will not say the House. The state retirement age will be the same whether someone works in the public sector or in the private sector. The age at which a person gets their private or occupational pension will vary, whether they work in the private sector or in the public sector. Some public sector workers can get their full pension, having made full contributions, at 60, but some members of the occupational pension schemes of the oil companies in my constituency can get their full pension, having made full contributions, at 55. This is not a matter of public or private sector; it depends on the rules of the individual occupational pension.