Media centre

Diary Notice:

• What: The High Court hearing of  Age Concern and Help the Aged legal challenge to the UK Age Regulations 2006
• When: Thursday 16 July 2009‚ 9:30am
• When: Royal Courts of Justice – High Court‚ The Strand‚ London

The final stage in a landmark three year legal battle to give people the right to continue working beyond the age of 65 will begin in less than a month’s time. 

Age Concern and Help the Aged is arguing that the National Default Retirement Age introduced under the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 fails to interpret an EU Directive against age discrimination correctly. The UK Government will have to make the case to the High Court as to why its social or employment policy objectives make the National Default Retirement Age necessary. 

The case which began in December 2006 returns to the High Court following a judgment from the European Court of Justice in March 2009.  European judges confirmed the UK government will have to overcome a high hurdle in the UK courts to justify allowing forced retirement.

Millions of people approaching retirement will be waiting anxiously for the outcome of the case to find out whether the law will protect them if they want to continue working beyond 65.  More than 300 employment appeals are on hold until this case clarifies the law. 

Support for a change in the law is strong - research by Age Concern and Help the Aged found almost nine out of ten over 50s believe people should have the right to continue working past 65 if they wish‚ as long as they are capable of performing well in their job.  MPs on the Work and Pensions Select Committee have also recently slammed the laws saying they contradict the Government’s wider social and labour market objectives.

The hearing will run until the 20th July.  It is likely the Judge will examine the evidence fully over the next few months and publish the final judgement in the autumn.

- ENDS -

Notes to Editors

1. Spokespeople from Age Concern and Help the Aged are available for interviews and briefings. Please contact the press office to arrange.
2. Case studies who are fighting for the right to work past 65 are available for pre-recorded and live interviews. Please contact the press office to arrange.
3. Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 were introduced to transpose the EU Directive 2000/78/EC into domestic legislation. They stipulate that a British employer can dismiss a member of staff without redundancy payments on that person's 65th birthday. They also give employees the right to request working beyond retirement age‚ but although employers have a duty to consider these requests‚ they need offer no justification for refusal.
4. Age Concern and Help the Aged is represented by Irwin Mitchell‚ the UK’s fourth largest law firm‚ which employs more than 2‚300 staff with offices across the UK.  Barristers acting in the case are Robin Allen QC and Declan O’Dempsey from Cloisters.
5. More details about the case and the reasons behind the action against the UK Government can be viewed on Age Concern's website at: ageconcern.org.uk/campaigns-forcedretirement.asp
6. Approximately 25‚000 people are forced out of work on reaching 65 each year.
7. A recent poll carried out by ICM in April 2009 found almost nine out of ten (87 per cent) of people over 50 say they believed people should have the right to continue working past 65 if they wished‚ as long as they are capable of performing well in their job.
8. Criticism of the National Default Retirement Age can be found at House of Commons Work and Pensions Committee‚ ‘The Equality Bill: how disability equality fits within a single Equality Act‚ 20th April 2009 (paragraph 122).
9. Age Concern’s free information booklet “Calling Time on Age Discrimination” sets out the steps that employers must take to dismiss someone approaching retirement. Another free booklet “Your employment choices” outlines some of the options for older workers.
   

Media contact:
Vicky Smith or Stefano Gilmini
Telephone:
020 8765 7515 or 7514
Out of office hours:
07071 243 243
Email:

Email Vicky Smith

or

Email Stefano Gelmini