Discuss the consequences Of an ageing population

Stephen Walker 11BH

Discuss the consequences

Of an ageing population

An ageing population is when the average age of the population increases each year. This is caused because of more widespread medical facilities, which can cater for sick or injured people quicker, and, because of advances in modern technology and scientific research, more vaccines and treatments for illnesses have been discovered. This means that people are more likely to live longer than they would have done fifty years ago. In this essay I am going to explain what consequences of having an ageing population are.

My first point is that when people get past the age of around 60-65, they will be claiming a state pension. As the life expectancy of individuals is increasing each year, the government are forced to pay out more money each year in pensions. This means that the government will have less money each year to spend on other needy areas such as schools and the NHS. As a result of this taxes would have to increase each year, which could end up getting out of hand.

This leads onto my second point, which is that as people will leave their jobs between the ages of 60 and 65, they will lose their income. They will have to support themselves on only the state pension and a work’s pension, if they have a policy. This means that the dependency ratio would increase each year and could lead to increasing numbers of people in poverty.

The fact that people would not be in work would lower their social status, as they are not earning money. As mentioned previously elderly people who claim a state pension are likely to ...

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The fact that people would not be in work would lower their social status, as they are not earning money. As mentioned previously elderly people who claim a state pension are likely to be in poverty. This is another factor, which would reduce their social status. This would then make it that their status in society would ‘hit rock bottom’ and would often be forgotten about.

The offspring of the elderly would be likely to find themselves in financial hardship from the fact that they are having to earn money to support themselves, their children, (if they have any), and their parents. An example where they would have to provide for them would be if they were placed in a nursing home of some kind.

As well as financial hardship, the family would experience social hardship, as once a week, every birthday and at Christmas, the family would have to visit the elderly relatives to ‘get them out of the house’, pardon the expression. Any outings to theme parks or day trips out would have to be organised so that the grandparent/s could go as well. This is mainly to set an example for younger generations because, when they become pensioners, they would want to be invited along so that they can enjoy themselves in their old age.

Having more people in the population of a relatively old age would increase the need for housing also. Because people are living longer, more houses are needed to accommodate for them. Otherwise there would be an overcrowding situation in many households.

More elderly people also increase the chance of crimes being committed, as elderly people are targets for burglars, vandals, and the like. This would have a negative impact on the community, or even the nation as a whole, as the amplification of crime in the media would have people afraid to leave their houses for fear of burglary.

In conclusion, the consequences of an ageing population are that the government will have less money to spend on other areas of society, many peoples social status would decrease, financial and social hardship for the relatives of the elderly would be present, the need for housing would increase, and the possibility of crime would also increase.