Do NOT rely on the state pension - this is why it will be in tatters by the time you quit work, and what you MUST do to protect your retirement, by JEFF PRESTRIDGE

I consider myself a lucky boy. I’m in receipt of the maximum ‘new’ state pension and have been pocketing it since June last year, a couple of months after my 66th birthday.Do I feel guilty that just short of £977 of taxable pension hits my bank account every four weeks?On one level, no. After all, I’ve paid my National Insurance (NI) dues over a working life stretching back more than 45 years – longer than the required 35 to get the maximum state pension.So I’ve earned it. Put the hard yards in. I’ve fulfilled my part of the contract by handing over humongous amounts of salary to the state in the form of NI to spend as it pleases. It’s payback time.But on another level, I do feel guilt. Why?First, it angers me that those who reached state pension age before April 6, 2016 continue to receive an inferior deal in the shape of the ‘basic’ pension (£184.90 a week) although some receive an ‘additional’ top-up.It’s an issue raised whenever I write about the state pension – and I am sure many of you will be putting pen to paper in response to this article (please do). It’s a discriminatory system but sadly I can’t see it changing.Secondly, although I haven’t been in receipt of the state pension for long, I do believe I currently enjoy a protection that will not be available to those who retire post 2029, when the present Parliament ends. Jeff Prestridge has been in receipt of the 'new' state pension since June last year, a couple of months after he turned 66 Those who reached state pension age before April 6, 2016 continue to receive an inferior deal in the shape of the ‘basic’ pensionYes, I’m talking about the triple lock, which ensures my pension rises annually by the higher of inflation, earnings or 2.5 per cent (for the over-75s, the triple lock is only applied to the ‘basic’ component – another state discrimination against the over 75-year-olds).Although Andy Burnham, to be crowned Prime Minister tomorrow, has already said he will stick to Labour’s manifesto commitment to the triple lock, it’s obvious that, come 2029, the lock will be unpicked, irrespective of which political party assumes power. (Reform has said it will keep it, but there’s plenty of time between now and 2029 for the party to change its mind in response to economic reality).More than likely, a watered-down version of the lock will see the light of day, with either the 2.5 per cent component binned or annual increases linked to average earnings growth – but with scope for payments to increase during bouts of high inflation.Yet the biggest chunk of guilt over my state pension is fuelled by inter-generational unfairness. In other words, the inferior state pension deal that my three boys – all now in their thirties – and millions of others of a similar age, in their 40s or early 50s, will receive in later life.A few days ago, it emerged that the Treasury is seeking to make millions of people wait longer before they can claim their state pension. This will result in the pension age rising from the current 66 years and four months to 67 by 2028 – and then to 68 between 2037 and 2039, seven years earlier than the current timetable (between 2044 and 2046).In a nutshell, some five million people now aged between 49 and 55 will have to wait an extra year for their state pension, costing them in today’s money about £12,500 while saving the Government £6billion a year.For Labour to push ahead with this rise in the pension age, it will have to legislate next year to give those affected sufficient time (ten years’ notice) to amend their retirement plans.By the time my boys approach retirement age in the early 2060s, I imagine the state pension will be in tatters: means-tested and only available to the poorest in society.News of this new state pension age of 68 has met opposition. Former pensions minister Baroness Altmann describes it as a ‘blunt cost-cutting tool’, hitting the ‘poorest and least healthy hardest’.She comes up with alternative proposals, including an increase in the number of NI qualifying years needed to receive the full pension: from 35 to 45 – and emasculation of the triple lock. I trust they are considered by the Government.For readers much younger than me, the message is clear. Don’t depend upon the state to see you through retirement. Instead, take matters into your own hands by saving assiduously into your works or self-invested pension, taking advantage of the tax relief you enjoy on contributions.And don’t forget the long-term virtue of investing into a tax-friendly Isa. Take control… now.