Privatized Old-Age Provision, Privatized Future

Abstract

Chapter 4 observes the change in old-age provision in Western European countries. Here, a decline in the role of state pensions and an increasing role for private old-age provision is evident. Widespread pension pessimism on the one hand, and tax incentives on the other, have stimulated private retirement saving. Old-age pension provision has thereby shifted increasingly in the direction of the market, something also evident in the growth of European pension funds. The interest of privately saving citizens in achieving good returns can collide with their interest in state provision, however, for example when the former leads to a weakening of support for the institutions of collective solidarity. The chapter traces how the slogan ‘Go private!’ can have consequences for the legitimacy and organization of state pension systems as a whole.