Le vieillissement de la population représente une grande menace pour les gouvernements et l’économie mondiale. Selon Gordon Brown, pour relever ce défi il faut que chacun investisse. Une réunion concernant l’ensemble de ces problèmes devrait avoir lieu en fin de semaine prochaine et les ministres des finances et banquiers pourront se retrouver. Des politiques gouvernementales doivent être mises en place pour consolider les finances publiques, restructurer les systèmes de sécurité sociale…
BERLIN (Reuters) – Ageing populations are one of the biggest threats to the world economy and governments need to get their finances in order now if they are to meet the challenge, according to Gordon Brown.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer will draw attention to the problem at the weekend meeting of finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 industrial and developing countries.
A G20 discussion paper prepared for the meeting said action needs to be taken to counter the effect of higher dependency ratios on creaking social security systems.
« Policies need to be directed at consolidating public finances, reforming social security systems, enhancing productivity, raising labour force participation and adapting migration policy to the demands of the labour market, » the paper said.
The document also proposed asking the International Monetary Fund to « include an integrated and consolidated analysis of the implications of the long-term challenges for economic and financial policies for each country. »
Brown believes that such a study would show that the UK is well placed relative to other major economies to cope with an ageing population.
He predicts that UK age-related spending on pensions and health would rise to just above 15 per cent of GDP in the UK by 2050, compared with 22 per cent in France, Italy and Germany.
Brown will tell the G20 that countries which have failed to maintain a robust set of fiscal rules and which are running high levels of debt and deficits will face serious difficulties in the future if they do not take action to consolidate their public finances.
