Illustration: Lu Ting/GT

The 1976 science fiction film Logan's Run depicts a hedonistic society that has solved the problem of overpopulation and providing for old age through the simple expedient of putting people to death once they reach 30.

While the UK has avoided such a stark course of action in the face of its own looming pension crisis, it recently announced measures that many other countries, which are facing a similar problem of an ageing population and unsustainable pension bill, are watching closely.

Under the new measures, the age at which people become eligible to receive the state pension will be raised from 65 in a series of reviews tied to increases in life expectancy. At current projections, that means someone in their mid-40s now can expect to become eligible for their state pension at 68. For people now under 30, it could be after they hit 70.

The new rulings apply solely to eligibility for the state pension, which is also among the lowest in Europe.

This means that anyone relying solely on the state pension to provide for their old age will need to work longer than previous generations, only to then have to rely upon a meager allowance in their old age. Of around 12.3 million people currently above retirement age in the UK, around 1.4 million continue to work, many because their pension allowances alone are not enough to survive on.

While the state pension is meant to be a safety net, for many people it will be their sole source of income during their retirement. Raising the age at which it is paid out means that future workers, especially those on low incomes who have little, if any, spare cash to put into private pension schemes, will have to work longer. However, for many this will not be an option, especially those who work in manual labor.

 For some, the move is another example of the hardworking masses being sold out by a wealthier ruling class for whom the state pension is but pocket money.

Others say it is unfair to young people, who will now have to work longer effectively to support today's retirees. At the same time, these workers are dealing with the fallout from the global economic crisis, and the UK's sputtering economy. Low interest rates and high housing costs are also making it more difficult for younger people to put money aside for their retirements.

However, few would deny that before the reforms the UK's pension system was, like many across the world, in danger of collapsing. Without changing the policy, the UK would have seen its pension liabilities and related costs such as fuel allowances increase fourfold over the next 50 years to reach around 491 billion pounds ($803 billion), or 9.4 percent of GDP, according to government figures.

A major concern is that a large scale lack of preparation for retirement among the population means many will not be able to bridge the gap between ending their working lives and becoming eligible for the state pension.

Meanwhile, the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has warned that high levels of unemployment among young people mean many will struggle to adequately provide for their retirements. It added that the UK ranks poorly in terms of its pensions provision, and that the country's living standards for pensioners are below the OECD average.

Meanwhile, the UK private pensions industry is widely distrusted. There have been high profile scandals that have seen workers see their pensions go up in smoke thanks to poor governance, unwise investment choices or even downright fraud. This is compounded by a lack of public education in how to save effectively.

However, the OECD report was positive regarding reforms to the UK pension system, saying the reform program is one of the most advanced in the developed world, that the average income of people above retirement age had been raised, and that the government's workplace pension scheme is expected to automatically enroll over 10 million workers in the next three years.

However, this praise was with the warning that young people in OECD member countries are now more at risk of facing poverty than current retirees.

The simple truth is that the state pension alone is not going to be enough to guarantee a comfortable retirement for today's workers. There needs to be a broad change to saving and investment attitudes in the UK, as well as more improvements in the provision, regulation and uptake of private pension options.

The author is a freelance writer. adam.skuse@yahoo.com or bizopinion@globaltimes.com.cn