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Has the cost of Australia's ageing population been exaggerated?
In an article for the Sydney Morning Herald, economics editor Ross Gittins suggested that the findings of an intergenerational report, published earlier this month, may have been misrepresented by politicians.
He wrote that the report's projected gap in spending that will emerge over the next four decades will not be caused primarily by pension schemes and other elderly costs, which will actually be quite manageable.
Mr Gittins also noted that any suggestion that government spending on retirees would be curbed is unlikely to be carried through, adding that any such move would be tantamount to political suicide.
Last month, the Investment and Financial Services Association (IFSA) suggested that Australians are not paying enough into their pension schemes to support a reasonable lifestyle.
Referring to recent research undertaken by Rice Warner Actuaries, chief executive of IFSA John Brogden indicated that the gap between what needs to be saved and what is actually being put into pension schemes is growing.
