Welcome for government U turn on mandatory retirement age

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Mon 20th Jul 2009

Liz Lynne, LibDem MEP and long time campaigner against age discrimination, has welcomed reports of a Government U-turn on the mandatory retirement age.

The Government has announced that a review of the practice of allowing employers to force workers over the age of 65 to retire is to be brought forward by a year. It has also been widely reported that most Ministers have already concluded that the mandatory retirement age should come to an end.

Liz Lynne, now First Vice- President of the European Parliament's Employment and Social Affairs Committee, has been a leading campaigner against mandatory retirement ages. In 2000 she helped to draft the Parliament's Employment (Age) Directive that sought to outlaw discrimination on grounds of age in the workplace.

Liz Lynne said: "I am very pleased that after many years of excuses and blinkered thinking, the Government has finally accepted that allowing people to be thrown on the scrap heap simply because they are 65 is pointless, ineffective and inhumane.

"At a time when many people throughout the UK are facing serious financial problems it is simply wrong that they should be forced out of their jobs even if they wish to continue working - purely on the basis of their age.

"This decision is also very important for the UK economy. If we are to overcome the recession then it is vital we retain our experienced staff and move away from the ludicrous assumption that if you are past 65 you are no longer of use.

"I welcome the news that the Government appears to have finally changed its mind. This is the right move for the UK economy, for UK business and for the rights of older people."