General secretary Brendan Barber has said that the unions will "fight to defend pension benefits".

He has also called for the link between earnings and the state pension to be restored and for compulsory contributions in company scheme to be phased in.

Recent figures published by the TUC show that the number of workers in private firms with a final salary pension scheme fell from 5.6 million in 1991 to 3.8 million in 2001 with the decline set to increase.

What action should be taken to resolve the pensions crisis? Should there be a return to compulsory company pensions?

This debate is now closed. Read a selection of your comments below.

The following comments reflect the balance of opinion we have received so far:

SUGGEST A DEBATE This topic was suggested by BF, London: What do you think of the TUC's argument on pensions? Send us your suggestions for Have Your Say debates

Final Salary pension schemes are part of the problem, because the pension someone gets relates to how much they were earning when they retired. So they discourage people, as they get older, from working part-time, or taking a less demanding job.
Andrew Walker, Knowle, UK

What pension crisis? I pay approx 20% of my income every month into various savings for my retirement; this means that my pension fund is very healthy. On the other hand I drive a 10-year-old car, have an 8-year-old TV, no flash new kitchen, extension etc on my house. In short you can't have it both ways, its no surprise to me that consumer debt is high at the same time that people have failed to save for their future.
Dave, Oxford

Pensions are in crisis for three reasons. The first two are the responsibility of the government, by removing tax relief on dividends and hiking stamp duty on property sales (pension funds own the majority of commercial property in the UK - they pay 5% in tax every time they buy/sell. The third is because pension fund managers overweighted their portfolios in technology equities that then crashed. If they had retained the property they sold to buy equities there would be no pension crisis even allowing for the two govt stealth taxes.
Aud, London, UK

It seems obvious that people retiring in 20+ years will receive very small pensions from the government. Therefore, we need to save. With so many people not doing so voluntarily, the government must lead the way in returning to compulsive company pensions. If not, we will all have to pay the price later - increased taxes for those in work and those with decent pension schemes and poverty for those who have not.
Jeane, London

Of course they don't care as they have safely secured their fat pensions Keith Baldwin, Chepstow

Successive governments have caused the pensions crisis, from Gordon Brown's stealing of taxpayers pension money to the payment holiday that was once given to companies who had a surplus in their pension funds. These so called experts have once again proved to be incompetent - of course they don't care as they have safely secured their fat pensions.
Keith Baldwin, Chepstow, Wales

Simple - save more! If people will not save voluntarily, then it can be achieved by additional taxation or if they need additional state funds to live, then, no matter what their age, they must undertake some task for society before payment is made.
Bill Potter, England

My husband died 11 years ago. I get no widows pension and work full time to pay the bills and keep a roof over my head. My husband worked all his life (non smoker) and died aged 43! You tell me how I can save for my pension when I am a low income earner whose money is taken each month by a greedy government and handed back to the majority who don't need it or who have not earned it and those that have not paid into the system and probably never will.
Carole, UK

The last time Gordon Brown stood in the Commons he pledged to hand out and extra �2 billion in foreign aid to a total of �5 billion. As India has spare cash for nuclear arms and a space program maybe we can not give them aid and give the money to our pensioners.
Richard, UK

I agree with all the comments regarding Labour's culpability. However it is also necessary for everyone to understand that as we live longer we need to work for longer. Most people do not start earning enough to start a pension until they are between the ages of 25/30. Assuming a retirement age of 65 that gives 35 or 40 years to save a pension to last until you are say 85/90 - another 20-25 years. It is not possible to save enough money to see yourself through this many years at the same time as paying off a mortgage and raising children. The only way to resolve the 'crisis' is to work longer.
Zo�, Surbiton, Surrey

We are taxed on our income. When we spend it. When we save it. When we move house, take a holiday, drive our cars to work and when we die. The government is killing this country. No incentives to save, higher taxes, terrible public services, immigration out of control and dole numbers fiddled by putting people on sick benefits. It's a joke.
Marc, Manchester

I am irritated at how the British populace is constantly blaming the government for the impending pensions crisis. It is everyone's fault for not having enough children. To decide against having children on account of them cramping your style and then expecting a big fat pension to be handed to you on a silver platter when you retire is gross hypocrisy.
Graeme Phillips, Guildford, UK

Raise the minimum retirement age to 70 in respect of both the state and occupational pensions. Make it wholly illegal for companies to raid their pension pots. Educate the population to understand that retirement is and always has been a luxury - not a right.
Harry, Thanet, UK

I don't expect there to be a state pension at all for people like me Sarah Allen, Somerset, UK

I don't trust the government or the pension providers to actually provide a decent return on my 'investment' when I retire in 20 years' time. In fact I don't expect there to be a state pension at all for people like me. I'm lucky enough to have been able to invest a windfall in a small second house which I currently rent out. I shall use the sale of this to provide a lump sum at a later date, which I shall then use as I see fit. At least I'm in control of things this way.
Sarah Allen, Somerset, UK

I would love to save for a pension. However, at the age of 23, retirement is far less on my mind than the day to day problems of paying all of my bills and attempting to put a little bit aside every month so that one day I might actually be able to afford my own home.
Jo, Bristol, UK

I, like many other people of my age group, would love to put more money aside for my retirement. However, the cost of my mortgage is high as is the amount of council tax I pay and other taxes both obvious and hidden. By the time I've taken out all the regular payments and made sure I have enough for food and heating, there's precious little left for a pension plan.
Catherine Jones, Birmingham, UK

Why should those who have done their best to save for their retirement, i.e. contributed part of their income to a company pension scheme, be taxed on the pension they subsequently receive? Retirees need every penny they can get just to maintain the status quo, especially as the state pension has been so badly eroded over recent years.
Teresa, Romsey, UK

Government workers and the trade unions are going to have to face up to the fact that final salary pension schemes are a thing of the past. Private employers can no longer afford to offer final salary membership to new employees so why should new government employees expect such perks, especially as the substantial costs of funding such arrangements fall at the door of the already hard pressed taxpayer?
Matt F, Bristol, UK

This Government has made sure that all MPs are going to receive a pension, the usual "I'm all right Jack, stuff you" comes to mind. I wouldn't trust a politician as far as I could throw one.
E. Sloan, England

Crucially education should play more of a role in this issue. Whilst at schools, post 16 students should have compulsory classes on finance; how to contribute to pensions, how they work, as well as other forms of savings. Young people need to be taught about the crucial need that there is for them to prepare for their long-term futures.
Daniel, London

Many of us will be either skint or homeless when we retire Gavin, Cardiff, Wales

It's about time people stopped stereotyping civil servants. At least 60% of us are poorly paid, our own pension contributions are high compared to the returns we will get. Believe it or not, civil servants are people too and many of us will be either skint or homeless when we retire. I earn more money in my second job delivering pizza.
Gavin, Cardiff, Wales

It was Mrs Thatcher who planned the demise of the state pension, as well as instigating the sell-off of social housing. Her "look after number 1" legacy is readable in many people's remarks here. The Govt now has to re-incentivise the nation so that the state pension and not property is seen as the best long-term financial strategy.
Simon Sleath, Bristol, England

You reap what you sow. The great unwashed voted for this government which now steals �5bn from our pension funds each year in the ultimate stealth tax. When people come to retire and find they don't have enough I hope they think back to the day in May 1997 they sowed their own downfall. We would not need compulsory pensions if the government didn't steal and waste so much of our money and actually left people enough to both live and save.
Martin, England

One sensible step would be to stop giving with one hand and taking away with another. Most of my state pension will have to be used to pay my council tax when I retire. And I live in a small 3 bedroom house, not some mansion.
Andrew, Cirencester, UK

The problem is largely of the Treasury's making. They chose a the time of stock market downtown to change accounting rules and start raiding pension fund earnings as yet another tax they hoped nobody would notice. They created this mess through a heady combination of arrogance and stupidity and they should put it right simply by restoring the position to what it was.
John M, Cambridge

This country has got it all wrong. Instead of taking care of its old and sick, it chooses to waste money on inappropriate stuff. I thought the welfare state and the NHS were set up to take care of people when they need it most yet the older generation are expected to live on a pittance. The country is becoming more split; the "haves" and the "have nots". Quality of life seems to have become dependent upon whether or not you manage to get yourself some top job, with all the perks and benefits.
Julia, Bristol, UK

There is already a compulsory pension for individuals - it's called national insurance Peter, London

The pensions 'crisis' was created by companies giving money to shareholders instead of putting it into the pension funds for employees. If bosses thought more about the people who worked for them instead of lining their own pockets then we wouldn't be in this problem. There is already a compulsory pension for individuals - it's called national insurance. That was only ever meant to be a basic level for everyone. If people want a decent pension then it should be coming from the companies who have been using their labour to make profits throughout their working life.
Peter, London

I would like to point out to all those bemoaning that pensions are taxed, that they are incorrect, as all pension contributions are given an instant 22% tax relief. Where else can anyone guarantee you instant 22% profit? How do I know this? I'm a qualified financial adviser, that's how. Furthermore, the pension crisis comes about from people living longer and healthier lives. If someone has a problem with the state not being able to afford to pay for them, perhaps they would like to give up their longer life expectancy. Finally, why should it be that the government pays for us through our retired years? We're lucky we even have a state pension. People who want to have an income in retirement should do something about it themselves.
Martyn O'Connor, Stirling, Scotland

MPs, civil servants and most government employees may not be the best paid in the world but they get a fantastic pension. Next time they want a pay increase to raise their pay to the same level as those in the private sector, they should have their pension rights reduced so that they also match.
Carol, England

Carol is obviously not a civil servant. If she was, she'd know that in addition to existing staff contributions, the Treasury takes about 7% out of the pay bill fund to pay for pensions before the money ever gets near our pay packets. Mrs Thatcher ran this crusade against our pensions when she came to power in 1979. She dropped it when it was shown that when that 7% is taken into account, we actually pay as much for our pension scheme as we would have to if we bought an equivalent scheme on the open market. No political party has addressed the real reason why Britons generally don't save enough for our pensions. It's because we are a low-wage economy and many people cannot afford to pay any more out.
Robert Day, Coventry, UK

It's about time people actually saved for their own retirement and stopped blaming the government for not providing. It's your future so you save for it.
Nathan Summers, UK

We have stolen our own futures by allowing this government to rob the pensions blind. Then they have the nerve to tell us we have not been preparing for the future. We had, they just moved the goal posts.
Duncan, UK

Maybe the government would like to answer my question... just how much of my already hard to live on wage, would now be taken for a "compulsory" company pension? Would they then give me benefits to allow me to eat and clothe myself while I'm still working.... let alone retired!
John Murray, Manchester, UK

The government must remove all taxes from pensions Caron, England

On one hand the government want us to put money into our pension. On the other they are taxing any profits our fund makes, taxing the income when we draw it and increasing indirect taxes so that we have less to save. Add to that many parents now need to support their children through university (either that or see them graduate with large debts or not graduate as they were trying to work at the same time). The government must remove all taxes from pensions.
Caron, England

The pensions crisis can be eased, if not resolved, by returning the �35bn. taken from pension funds by this most incompetent of governments!!
Alan Ball, Stoke-on-Trent, England

Before making pension saving compulsory there must be a way to get money out should the rules change - at present no such exit route exists. Secondly it is critical to address the crisis in public confidence in pension providers. Finally it would be nice to see the government leading by example by stopping the tax raid on pension funds before expecting the average worker to cough up even more of their cash to fund something they may not even live long enough to benefit from.
Jonny, England

Compulsory pension schemes are essential for the next generations Tony Colquhoun, Millport

I believe compulsory pension schemes are essential for the next generations. As a nation we need to be insured for the future. What could we call this scheme though? How about "Insurance for the Nation"? It sounds quite catchy.
Tony Colquhoun, Millport

Perhaps Gordon Brown could stop his stealth taxes on our pension funds and savings, that would be a good start.
Chris H, UK

It's about time Gordon Brown took responsibility for the pensions crisis and resigned. It was his tax raid on pensions which turned a problem (lower stock markets) into a pensions crisis. The tax needs to be reversed and the money plundered through it returned to the pension schemes. How on earth can taxing pensions be allowed?
Scott, Leeds, UK

Agree with Scott; the crisis is Brown's, and Blair's as well - by making life much tougher for the businesses in whose shares the pension funds are invested. The FTSE has gone sideways since Labour came to power, meaning a lack of wealth creation. So much for Labour's vision of enterprise.
Bob, Kingston