Call for Evidence

Preparing for an ageing society

The UK is an ageing society. In 2023 the total fertility rate for England and Wales stood at 1.44 children per woman, the lowest rate on record and below the level required to maintain a stable population.[1] The population has continued to rise only as a result of immigration. With life expectancy increasing, the UK can expect 27 per cent of its population to be over 65 by 2072, compared to around 19 per cent in 2022;[2] the percentage of the population over 85 (around 2.5 per cent in 2022) is set to nearly double and reach approximately 3.3 million by 2047.[3] Attempts to raise the birth rate have been unsuccessful in a number of countries; the UK can therefore expect its population to increasingly comprise older individuals.

The resultant increase in the proportion of those relying on the provision of health and social care and a corresponding reduction in workers to finance and provide such care means that the UK will face growing economic challenges. These will be more than just the fiscal difficulties relating to the funding of health and social care. Demographic shifts can be expected to have wide-ranging implications for the economy and society, requiring policy responses in a number of areas.

The Economic Affairs Committee is launching an inquiry to investigate the impact of ageing on the UK economy, the opportunities and challenges the Government needs to consider given the demographic trends, the policies necessary to adapt to this future and the broader behavioural changes that may be required.

The Committee seeks evidence on the following questions. Respondents are not obliged to address all of them.

1. What factors might affect the currently projected demographic trends? Are there critical inflexion points for the birth rate, with qualitatively different effects should the rate fall below a certain level? If so, what policies might protect against falling below that level?
2. What role does immigration play in developing trends? Do different types of immigration entail different trends? Are any changes to the Government’s immigration regime needed to reflect the UK’s future demographic characteristics?
3. What changes to the workforce are needed to support an ageing population? How does the productivity of older workers compare to those who are younger? How might the productivity of older workers be improved?
4. What incentives regarding workforce participation by older individuals are created by the various existing tax and pension arrangements? What policies should the Government pursue to encourage and support people to remain in the workforce later in life? How can the recruitment and retention of older people be supported? What effects would greater workplace participation amongst the older population have on economic growth?
5. What policies aimed at younger people are necessary given the broader ageing of the UK? How might the course of working lives have to change as the UK transitions to an older population?
6. Will AI and other technologies deliver a sufficient rise in productivity to offset the impact of an ageing and shrinking workforce on the economy?
7. Which countries can the UK learn from in facing the demographic transition to an older population?
8. Are there any issues relating to intergenerational fairness raised by a shift towards an older population? Are there policies which might improve the efficiency of the transfer of assets between generations?

[1] https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/conceptionandfertilityrates/articles/howisthefertilityratechanginginenglandandwales/2024-10-28

[2] https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/the-uks-changing-population/

[3] https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationprojections/bulletins/nationalpopulationprojections/2022based

ANNEX: GUIDANCE FOR SUBMISSIONS

Written evidence should be submitted online by clicking the “Start” button below. This page also provides guidance on submitting evidence.

Please do not submit PDFs (if you do not have access to Microsoft Word you may submit in another editable electronic form). If you have difficulty submitting evidence online, please contact the Committee staff by emailing economicaffairs@parliament.uk or by telephoning 020 7219 5358. The deadline for written evidence is 00:01 on 28 April 2025.

Short submissions are preferred. A submission longer than six pages should include a one-page summary. Paragraphs should be numbered. Submissions should be dated, with a note of the author’s name, and of whether the author is making the submission on an individual or a corporate basis. All submissions made through the written submission form will be acknowledged automatically by email.

Submitters who use generative AI to produce their work should disclose this to us and accept that they have taken ownership and responsibility for the contents of their submission. 

Evidence which is accepted by the Committee may be published online at any stage; when it is so published it becomes subject to parliamentary copyright and is protected by parliamentary privilege. Submissions which have been previously published will not be accepted as evidence. Once you have received acknowledgement that the evidence has been accepted you will receive a further email, and at this point you may publicise or publish your evidence yourself. In doing so you must indicate that it was prepared for the Committee, and you should be aware that your publication or re-publication of your evidence may not be protected by parliamentary privilege.

Personal contact details will be removed from evidence before publication but will be retained by the Committee Office and used for specific purposes relating to the Committee’s work, for instance to seek additional information.

Persons who submit written evidence, and others, may be invited to give oral evidence. Oral evidence is usually given in public at Westminster and broadcast online; transcripts are also taken and published online. Persons invited to give oral evidence will be notified separately of the procedure to be followed and the topics likely to be discussed.

We will handle the personal data you give us in line with the General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018, as set out in our privacy notice: https://www.parliament.uk/site-information/data-protection/privacy-notice-for-house-of-lords-select-committee-witnesses/

Substantive communications to the Committee about the inquiry should be addressed through the clerk of the Committee, whether or not they are intended to constitute formal evidence to the Committee.

This is a public call for evidence. Please bring it to the attention of other groups and individuals who may not have received a copy direct.

Diversity comes in many forms and hearing a range of different perspectives means that committees are better informed and can more effectively scrutinise public policy and legislation. Committees can undertake their role most effectively when they hear from a wide range of individuals, sectors or groups in society affected by a particular policy or piece of legislation. We encourage anyone with experience or expertise of an issue under investigation by a select committee to share their views with the committee, with the full knowledge that their views have value and are welcome.

You may follow the progress of the inquiry at https://committees.parliament.uk/work/9015/preparing-for-an-ageing-society/.