Simon Hughes speech to mark 100 years of the Basic State Pension

Speech delivered on Sun 14th Sep 2008

In 1889 the Rev F H Stead warden of the Browning Settlement organised a meeting in Browning Hall off the Walworth Road in my constituency to start a campaign for a state pension. This led to the national campaign spearheaded by the National Committee of Organised Labour for a free state pension of 5 shillings a week.

Within 20 years the campaign had succeeded. A state pension was piloted by Lloyd George when he succeeded Asquith as Chancellor in 1908. The first pensions were paid, through the post office, in January 1909.

In 1908 when our Liberal forefathers passed the landmark Pensions Act, only a quarter of people lived to draw their pensions and on average lived only a further 9 years.

A hundred years on, four out of five people live to retirement age - and on average 24 years more.

In addition, over most of the 20th century the gap between rich and poor narrowed. Since 1979 this trend has reversed.

And under New Labour the runaway rich have never had it so good.

In 2000, the average FTSE 100 chief executive was paid 39 times the national average. Now, just eight years later, top bosses earn over a 100 times the national average. Over the last couple of years while the obscenely rich were paid billions of pounds in bonuses - 4,200 individuals received over a £1million each - a third of a million more pensioners have fallen into poverty.

Liberal Democrats, we must be clear about our policy and our message for pensioners and for their families.

Liberal Democrats must completely reject the 'trickle down argument' - the notion that lining the pockets of the rich will enrich us all. We must state clearly that we do not want millions of ordinary people having to pick up crumbs from the tables of the super-rich.

In Britain now we have a huge income and wealth injustice which Liberal Democrats and all claiming the mantle of progressive politics must correct. A century after the first state pension, we must insist that those who have done so well are not allowed to escape from making their appropriate contribution to society in tax.

Only if we are absolutely determined to close the scandalously wide gap between rich and poor Britain will Liberal Democrats honour our tradition of supporting Britain's retired people to make sure everyone has a retirement free from the pains of poverty.