Italy, record longevity: will the retirement age rise in 2027? The life expectancy grows, but the government wants to block the increase at 67 years and 3 months. Will the social security system hold without reform?
Italy celebrates the historical record of longevity with a life expectancy that touched 83.4 years in the two-year period 2023-2024. The implication of the medal of this success is the obligation to work more. Otherwise the system is not standing unless you want to considerably increase contributions and taxes. According to Istat’s calculations, the increase in retirement age scheduled for 2027 is now inevitable, but the government seems intent on making wall against this unpopular measure. The question raises a cry of alarm: on the one hand, life expectancy continues to grow, on the other, the Italian population ages quickly and the births are falling.
In 2027, the retirement age could increase from 67 to 67 years and three months, as indicated by Istat, based on the increase in life expectancy. A news that, on the one hand, is positive, but on the other raises concerns about the social security system. The government is decided to avoid this change, as confirmed by the Undersecretary for Work Claudio Durigon (Lega): “We will block the increase in 2027, we will sterilize it”.
But the demographic reality does not discount. By 2050, the Italian population will fall by over 4 million people, with a substantial loss of young people who feed growing inequality between generations. Not only will Italians live more, but the number of those who need assistance due to advanced age will grow exponentially. The danger is under everyone’s eyes: future generations will inherit a very high public debt. In perspective they could be forced with their contributions and their taxes to keep parents and grandparents more and more elderly and ailments,
The president of Istat, Francesco Maria Chelli, has highlighted a dramatic situation: “The structure of our society is no longer a pyramid, but a great mushroom”, he warned, referring to the growing mass of elderly in an increasingly smaller population without spare parts. The drop in births, which continues inexorably since 2014, led the country to a demographic decrease of 0.6 per thousand in 2024. In a few words, the Italian “workforce” is aging and the young people, unfortunately, are scarce.
The most alarming forecasts speak of an overall loss of almost 13 million inhabitants by 2080. And while the number of the elderly grows, resources for social and health care continue to scarce, with a direct impact on the public policies and finances of the country.
The government is preparing to freeze the increase in retirement age, but the risk of unpopular choices could only procrastinate a reform that becomes more urgent every day. While the Italian population ages, the question remains the same: what will be the future of a country that struggles to renew itself?
The demographic emergency, in fact, is not limited to an increase in longevity: it is an alarm signal that highlights the need for far -sighted policies, capable of responding to the challenges of an increasingly older population and a workforce that continues to decrease.
