First, Japan is an excellent example because, according to the OECD, it has aged more rapidly and has an older age distribution than any other country in the world. There are differences between Japan and us because, of course, we are still growing, and we are bringing in immigrants and Japan isn't. Nonetheless, if you want to look at the impact of aging on the economy, Japan is an excellent example.
I don't want to be simplistic, but I think very broadly there is a very big picture. We should be doing two things. You, as parliamentarians, should be saying, “What can we do to keep people in the workforce longer?” The idea of freedom 55 is a fraud. We're allowing people to leave the workforce when we need more people in the workforce and we're creating the problems that creates on employer pensions. We shouldn't even allow a pension plan to allow someone to retire before 60, or even 65.
If I can remind everybody, the OECD is urging every western government to push up the minimum age of pensionable retirement to 68.