BRITAIN. Millions of Women 'Face Poverty in Old Age'

LONDON (Daily Mail), November 2, 2005: MILLIONS of women face growing old in poverty because their pensions will be too small, a report warns today. Fewer than a third of women who are already retired are entitled to the full basic state pension, the Government study shows. And some 2.2m women are not building up a state pension at all because either they do not work or do not earn enough to pay contributions. The report says women are being penalised for choosing to look after children rather than pursue a career. Women on average save only £1 for retirement for every £3 saved by men. A typical man gets up to £100 more a week in private pension income than a woman of the same age. A woman working full-time from the age of 21 on average wages can expect £166 a week from the state and up to £40 from a private pension-on retirement. But had she taken ten years off to bring up children and then worked part-time for five years her income would be cut by a fifth, the Government study shows. The study predicts that the pension income gap between men and women will last until 2025 at least. Experts say the pension system is out of step with modern society because it assumes that all women marry and are supported by partners in later life. Some observers are calling for a 'citizen's pension' which would see full-time mothers receive the same money as their working husbands. The new pension would be linked to residence, rather than national insurance contributions. It would be paid to everyone even if they had never worked. Christine Farnish, chief executive of the National Association of Pension Funds, said: 'People want a simpler, fairer system which does not penalise women who have taken work breaks, and which does not subject millions of pensioners to means testing.' The Department of Work and Pensions report is expected to recommend that women need to plan their finances more carefully especially with life expectancy rising. Research suggests that the average professional woman currently in her twenties will live into her mid-nineties. Surveys also suggest that large numbers of young women assume that their partner will provide for them and ignore the possibility of their relationships breaking down. By Becky Barrow DAILY MAIL