Independent Age believes that in a compassionate and wealthy society, no one – of any age – should live in poverty.
However, in Scotland in recent years, poverty rates among older people have increased. On the horizon are further significant changes likely to mean many more older people living in poverty, including demographic changes which will see an increase in the numbers of older people, and planned increases to the State Pension age which will impact the poorest households most.
The causes of pensioner poverty can be complex and the policy solutions needed span numerous remits including income, housing, food, and energy. They also involve various levels of government across the UK and Scotland along with broader civil society, companies and regulators.
We are therefore calling for the Scottish Government to be the first UK nation to develop and implement a national Pensioner Poverty Strategy, to systematically tackle the factors that cause, or exacerbate, poverty in older age.
This briefing is intended to help build the foundation of an action-oriented Pensioner Poverty Strategy for Scotland, which effectively drives down poverty rates through sustained, coherent and comprehensive policy interventions.
Together, we can tackle pensioner poverty in Scotland.