Autumn Statement: Plan to raise state pension age sooner 5 December 2013 Last updated at 03:44 The date when people must be 68 to draw a state pension - formerly scheduled for 2046 - will be brought forward to the mid-2030s, Chancellor George Osborne will announce later. Plans to be announced in Mr Osborne's Autumn Statement mean the age could rise again to 69 by the late 2040s. The alteration is said to be deemed necessary as life expectancy is rising. Moving the change forward will ensure "the country can offer people decent pensions," a government source said. The move would affect people now aged in their 40s and below. Mr Osborne is due to deliver his statement to the House of Commons at 11:15 GMT. Among the measures reported so far are: Another £1bn of cuts from Whitehall budgets for each of the next three years A new formula will increase the state pension age to keep pace with increasing life expectancy. The government will say that people should spend on average no more than one-third of their adult lives in retirement. This means people now in their 20s would have to work until they are 70, many observers believe. The government has already announced the state pension age will increase to 66 by 2020 and 67 by 2028; these dates will not change. But it said in a statement: "Under current estimates of life expectancy the principle being confirmed today implies the SPA (state pension age) rise to 68 could come forward to the mid-2030s, from its current date of 2046, rising to 69 by the late 2040s. This will affect people in their forties and below; no-one over 50 will have a retirement age of 68 or more. A review of the way the state pension age is calculated, announced earlier this year, will be informed by "up-to-date" life-expectancy figures. A government source said: "This is part of the government's long-term plan to secure a responsible recovery. It is a difficult decision to make sure there is a fair deal across future generations and that the country can live within its means. It will help make sure the country can offer people decent pensions in their old age in a way that with increasing life expectancy the country can also afford.