Naomi...for my sins, I was a Financial Adviser from age 41, to 55, when I took a much needed early retirement. I am now working for the Welsh Government on a national health study, which is supposed to be part-time but really is more like full-time these days. I intend to retire fully in 4 years time when I am 65, and my own OAP kicks in.
On the subject of the OAP, no Government of any hue, not even the Tories under Mrs Voldemort, have ever shown any inclination whatsoever of doing away with it. It is a non-political party issue, as any changes made will come into force many years in the future.
We need a national debate about financing it of course, and this present administration, together with the previous Labour one, have tinkered with the terms and conditions somewhat, but more needs to be done, especially as people life expectancy is so much higher these days, than it was in the 50's and 60's.
More important than the reduced mortality rate is the much higher expectations that the present younger generation have for their retirement, then our parents and grandparents had. All my nieces and nephews say that they can't afford to save much, if anything for their retirement, and yet they have £500 of Mobile phone in their pockets, paying between £30 and £50 a month.