The default retirement age is a “draconian measure which should be repealed at the earliest possible moment”, says TAEN – The Age and Employment Network.

Today the government closes its evidence gathering for the Review of the Default Retirement Age (DRA).

Commenting on the dossier of evidence TAEN has submitted to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), Chris Ball, TAEN’s chief executive, says: “Mandatory retirement is utterly unnecessary and causes untold damage to Britain’s economy and the lives of people forced out of work when they are most vulnerable.

“By 2065 Britain’s oldest person will be the first to reach 120. She is out there somewhere right now and if her employer is foolish enough to be applying the DRA, she will have just retired.”

 “People are living longer, even into their 100s, and yet we are pushing them out of the door at the comparatively youthful age of 65. It makes no sense.

“Employers are beginning to realise that older workers can make the difference between success and failure. They should be encouraged to welcome older workers, help them stay in work and not to push them out of the door.”