People heading towards retirement say it is unfair that the state pension age could be raised to 68 within years, and many fear the whole system could be scrapped for future generations. Reports suggest Treasury officials have indicated to the Office for Budget Responsibility that the Government's current policy assumption is to bring forward the State Pension age rise to 68 to as early at 2037.

Three in five people aged 60-65 now think their own State Pension age is unfair, according to new research from the Standard Life Centre for the Future of Retirement. This is the first cohort affected by the existing increase in the State Pension age from 66 to 67 (phased over two years from 2026 to 2028), with the research indicating widespread dissatisfaction about the change.

Seven in ten people aged 60 to 65 think the threshold should remain unchanged regardless of rises in average life expectancy, with fewer than a quarter (23%) saying they would support the State Pension age rising. The findings come as policymakers consider how the UK can balance the long-term affordability of the State Pension with the need to ensure people have enough income in later life.

Catherine Foot, director of the Standard Life Centre for the Future of Retirement, said: As our population ages, the country is faced with fiscal challenges that involve difficult trade-offs. The State Pension is often central to these debates, but our research shows how strongly people feel about changes to the State Pension age. A majority of those most immediately affected by the ongoing increase to 67 believe the change is unfair and do not support further rises linked to life expectancy. This is particularly true for women, who are significantly less likely than men to have adequate private retirement savings.

If further increases to the State Pension age are considered, policymakers will need to ensure people have sufficient opportunity to prepare, and should also take action to minimise the impact on those with lower savings and fewer options to extend their working lives."

Only a quarter think that the government should be able to raise the State Pension age to protect taxpayers if people are living for longer but half agree that spending on the State Pension will be unsustainable in the long-term.

Previous Standard Life research found that only half of UK adults think the State Pension will be available for everyone when they reach State Pension age and just 29% expect the Triple Lock to still be in place by the time they retire.

Under current legislation, the State Pension age is scheduled to increase to 68 between 2044 and 2046 for those born between April 1977 and April 1978, but the Government may bring that change forward to 2037.

Catherine said: As policymakers consider the future of the State Pension and wider pensions adequacy, it is vital that the publics views are heard, alongside expert perspectives. Deliberative democracy - such as Citizens Assemblies - can help people engage with these complex social and fiscal issues, giving policymakers a better understanding of the priorities that matter most to ordinary people. Integrating citizen participation into future pension reforms could help support more sustainable long-term decision-making and reduce resentment around further reforms.