AGEING POPULATION IS A REALITY, SO LET'S END DISCRIMINATION AND ABUSE OF OLDER PEOPLE - LIZ LYNNE

8.00.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Thu 21st Feb 2008

An ageing population is a long-term reality and requires a major cultural shift if social breakdown is to be avoided, according to a Liberal Democrat Euro-MP.

Liz Lynne MEP, Vice-President of the European Parliament's Employment and Social Affairs Committee and the author of a recent key report on social protection and social exclusion, spoke last night in a debate on a report on demographic change across the EU. The report will be voted on later today by MEPs.

Speaking in the debate Liz Lynne said:

"This has been a difficult report, with unfortunately very little time to find compromises; however, I am pleased with some elements of what we do have, such as the reference to the need to tackle older abuse.

"More needs to be done urgently to end the physical, financial, emotional and other forms of abuse regularly suffered by older people. Latest estimates put the number of older people that have suffered abuse at over 10%; that is why I welcome the Commission's intention to bring forward a communication on the issue, but we must do more.

"Member States must also work towards ensuring independence, free personal care, life long learning and freedom from discrimination in the workplace for all older people, and that means fully implementing the 2000 Employment Directive and then building on it.

"We must work to put an end to employees being thrown onto the employment scrap heap, whether that is at fifty, fifty-five or sixty-five. An arbitrary age of statutory retirement, in my view must be abolished, whilst ensuring a statutory pension age set at a Member State level and there is a clear difference.

"Individuals then have a choice to stop work and take their pensions or to continue working and either take their pension or defer it until they choose to stop working. Unfortunately I was unable to achieve consensus on this and therefore it is not in the report but I believe Member States must be encouraged to look at this for the future.

"Most of the issues covered by this report should remain within the competence of Member States but there is still a great deal we can do in terms of exchange of best practice."