ABSTRACT
This chapter is intended as a contribution to the debate on the financial sustainability of pension systems and public finances in the context of ageing populations. It presents the results of the latest projections for age-related public expenditure, notably pensions, in the European Union Member States and the indicators produced with regard to the challenge of the ageing of the population. The Council conclusions also led the Economic Policy Committee to establish a specific working group – the Ageing Working Group – to examine the economic and budgetary implications of ageing populations. The central assumptions in the population projections concern fertility rates, life expectancies and migration. On the basis of the mandate given by the ECOFIN Council, the Economic Policy Committee's Working Group on Ageing has produced a new set of long-term projections for 25 EU Member States covering pensions, long-term care, and education and unemployment transfers.
