Aeging Popultion Pros And Cons

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Pros and Cons of An Aeging Population An ageing population can be useful to society in some areas of development but at the same time it is argued that it can also cause a considerable amount of strain to the working class and hinder government expenditure. For instance, in Britain the increase in of people over 60 is estimated to rise by 40% in the next 30 years and 13 million people are estimated to be over 65 in 2030, which in effect will be putting more strain on the government as this is when pensions are received. Moreover in 1951 there were only 300 people in Britain aged over 100 and by 2031 it’s expected this figure will be at 36,000 proving that due to an improvement in health care people are living for longer. At the same time, fertility is set to fall as women leave childbirth later and later because of their careers, meaning in the foreseeable future there will be fewer young people supporting a growing elderly population As the population ages, the ratio of non-workers to workers increases, assuming that retirement ages do not change sufficiently to offset the rise in life expectancy. In 2004, there were approximately 4 working age individuals (aged 20-64) for every 1 person aged 65 and over. By 2056 this ratio is predicted to fall to about 2.1 meaning our dependence on the workers will increase hugely and sadly this means taxation will have to go up. But the UK is not alone in its concerns over pension provision; others include China whose elderly population could double between 2000 and 2027. Most of the developed world is having to consider how best to support older individuals in the presence of an ageing population: Increasing life-expectancy which means that people are spending more and more years in retirement and lower birth rates. In 1900, on average a 65 year-old man in the UK could expect to live for another 10 years (11 years for a
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