(Image: Peter Byrne)
The Government will respond to calls for the State Pension age to be lowered so more young adults have a chance of finding work.
A petition calling for a reduction in the retirement age has attracted 15,788 signatures, passing the 10,000 threshold which means ministers must now respond.
The pension petition argues that keeping people in work for longer could reduce the number of jobs available to younger adults.
It calls for the State Pension age to be reduced to encourage retirement and free up jobs.
The petition is still open and will run until December 25, 2026. It can still be signed here.
DWP retirement age reduction proposal
The petition, created by Helen Grice, argues that younger adults who are not currently working could benefit if more older workers retired.
It says: “The longer people are having to work the fewer jobs there are out there for young adults.”
The campaign claims lowering the State Pension age could encourage some older workers to retire, potentially creating vacancies that employers could fill with younger workers.
It also argues that this could give older people who have worked throughout their lives the chance to enjoy more years in retirement.
Helen Grice pension petition
The petition was published on June 25, 2026 and passed the 10,000-signature mark on September 25.
That means the Government is now required to respond. However, reaching 10,000 signatures does not trigger a debate in Parliament and does not mean the Government has accepted the proposal.
The petition would need to reach 100,000 signatures before it is considered for a parliamentary debate. It currently has 15,788 signatures.
Calls for pension age to be lowered
The petition does not specify a particular new State Pension age. Instead, it calls generally for the pension age to be lowered so older workers can retire earlier and younger adults have more opportunities to find employment.
The proposal is based on the argument that allowing people to retire earlier could create space in the labour market.
Will the pension age be lowered?
There is currently no confirmation that it will. The Government has only confirmed that it will respond to the petition because it has passed 10,000 signatures.
The petition itself remains open until December 25.
Any decision on changing the State Pension age would therefore be separate from the petition reaching the 10,000-signature threshold.
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What is the DWP State Pension age?
The current UK State Pension age is 66, rising gradually to 67 between April 2026 and March 2028 for people born from 6 April 1960 to 5 April 1977.
The Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) administers the State Pension. The State Pension is a regular payment from the government most people can claim when they reach State Pension age. Not everyone gets the same amount. How much you get depends on your National Insurance record.
Your State Pension age (SPA) is the earliest age you can claim your State Pension; it is not the same as retirement age, as many people choose to take their private pension earlier.