Raising the state pension age could help the treasury to cut public sector net debt.

This is the view of the deputy editor for Pensions Week, a magazine that covers the UK pension and investment markets.

Deputy editor Charlie Kirby referred to a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers, which stated the pension age should be raised to 70 by 2046.

He added that Pensions Week has used figures from the report to discover £130 billion could be saved by 2050 if the government follows PwC's recommendation to raise the state pension age.

However, Age Concern and Help the Aged have suggested that people should be encouraged but not forced to work longer.

A press release from the two charities stated that it is contradictory to consider raising the state pension age while the default retirement age is still in place.

Mr Kirby added: "The recent HeyDay case in the High Court, [in which Help the Aged was an interested party confirmed that employers are allowed to make staff retire at 65 if it has been in their long-term business plans] was a serious blow for the charities, although recent murmurings from both the government and the opposition suggest that this may not be enforceable for long."