iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Three little charts from this year's Retirement Voice survey On every metric people feel things are worsening for their and their children's futures The tacit promise that things should get better from one generation to the next risks slipping away library.standardlife.co.uk/RetirementVo...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Inset Day but the thirst for learning never ends!

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

And you can see the immediate impacts of having a basic income for everyone above that age Are people ready for a State Pension age of 67? share.google/bYT2L25i6Z14...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

Excellent piece from @stephenkb.bsky.social The real world UBI that most people in the UK get on reaching a certain age - the State Pension Revealing when you consider the reasons people give for working just below and above the State Pension age www.ft.com/content/337b...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Cursed headline. Finger closes on the monkey paw as the country enters 6 months of rain from September

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

Me trying to downplay the size of my emergency by putting on a whimsical French accent:

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

Amazing. Normally they stop working when you leave Zone 3

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

Little set of micro screwdrivers from W Germany, many of the things I unscrew would have been utter Sci Fi when they were made On the other hand - often walk around where I live and almost everything man made (other than canal infrastructure) in every direction has been built in last 15 years old

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

Interesting as well when you compare with what people think contributes to their pension wealth...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

The Commission used some of our research - 3 in 5 Gen Z and half of Millenials think being auto-enrolled means they are saving enough for retirement. For many on the minimum rates that will not be the case share.google/HR4dudM2keHa...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

A related factor but I wonder how this interacts with workforce age as well

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

Home Alone Home Alone 2: Lost in New York ...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

Ooh - handy list of PRACTICAL TIPS FOR WORKING PARENTS for anyone after some childcare hacks for the "summer childcare crunch" Not sure why I hadn't thought of...*checks notes*... the Ritz-Carlton, Gleneagles, Southern California or one in Fiji who actually 'get' what parents need lnkd.in/eRSJVrUN

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 03/02/2026

This is the right framing and question. We can learn a lot about the real world experiment of UBI in a socially/politically acceptable packaging (the State Pension) Most agree the State Pension is there to ensure everyone has a minimum level of income in retirement.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

Knowing with some certainty that there is a group in society who's rates of poverty will double in the next few years - is that the best outcome we can hope for? That's what will happen to 66 year olds from next April - how can we weather the change? www.standardlife.co.uk/centre-for-t...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 29/11/2025

And on pensions not ISAs - but people really underestimate the importance of investment growth...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 29/11/2025

On top of good point on financial literacy - we've found a) people feel less certain of their future finances because of current world/UK affairs b) those that feel uncertain more likely to be cautious /save cash, less able to visualise their future self library.standardlife.co.uk/RetirementVo...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 17/11/2025

The other interesting aspect is how this makes the whole life course more stretched out, with people starting later, working later and living longer library.standardlife.co.uk/changing-jou...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

And to complete the picture - the politics of who then pays for this. Large birth cohorts are also large voting blocs. Until 2024* Baby Boomers had never "lost" a general election (*presumably, haven't seen update of this chart)

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 16/07/2025

And for more analysis that no one is asking for... Norway would win the knockouts if each match was based on who has the smallest gender pay gap.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 16/07/2025

Ahead of the Euro 2025 quarterfinals... How would you feel if the officials added an additional 14 minutes of injury time at the end of the 90? That's how much longer women in the UK need to achieve pay parity. In Belgium it's just 1 extra minute

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 09/07/2025

Agree huge diversity in how/when costs increase (health, social care, pensions) but also when economic activity declines 78% of people say they could do their job or one like it by the time they're 60, less than half at 70

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 20/06/2025

Who do you picture working in the high-growth, high-tech sectors of rhe Industrial Strategy? These sectors are older than average and all have a higher rates of early retirement. We estimate this costs economy £31bn - we need to plan for this www.standardlife.co.uk/centre-for-t...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 19/06/2025

2 year old who loves nothing more than stickers and rainbows devastated when I come home from work wearing a rainbow sticker that wasn't for her...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 11/06/2025

Policy thinking on a topic like the State Pension helped by clear A/B choices even if cost neutral Raising the AGE hits lower earners (most rely on it /feel effect of longer wait) Limiting it's VALUE hit higher earners more (live longer and get more over lifetime) academic.oup.com/oxrep/articl...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Surprising fact to me: Environmental Taxes in the UK are lower now as % of GDP as any point in the last 25 years Average household paid less in 2022 than they did in 1999. Not inflation adjusted - in actual £ terms Taxes raise money but they also shape behaviour www.ons.gov.uk/economy/envi...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

This is an excellent Lords Select Committee session - nominally on the economics of ageing - but opens up all the big topics: ageism, productivity, career change, fertility, social care, and the 'nastiest, hardest problem in finance' @csfoot.bsky.social parliamentlive.tv/event/index/...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

What about a "post-person"? From kids play cafe

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 02/02/2025

More detail on the analysis here With over 15m people expected to be undersaving or financially insecure in retirement www.thephoenixgroup.com/phoenix-insi...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 02/02/2025

Interesting article on changing pension landscape Wealthier /well pensioned people may end up shifting behaviour for tax reasons But as our Phoenix Insights research shows - for more than half of people retiring between now and 2060 that's academic if they've undersaved on.ft.com/4hCi1zJ

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

This is something we're focusing on a lot as a policy area - it's really worrying! www.thephoenixgroup.com/phoenix-insi...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

(Newspaper Headlines): Zombie Apocalypse Set To Reduce YOUR Mortgage Rates

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 04/12/2024

Rapidly entering middle age as a nation www.thephoenixgroup.com/phoenix-insi...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 26/11/2024

Yes age and life stage definitely a key factor in earnings (and assets). Average pay disguising the fact that most people will earn above and below across the arc of their life www.thephoenixgroup.com/phoenix-insi...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

And for interest, 47% of Carers have zero private pension saving at age 60-65. And those that do have 20% less in their pots than average

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

Today is Carers Rights Day Only a quarter of people think they will be a carer before they reach state pension age. In reality half of people become an unpaid carer by the age of 50

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 20/11/2024

Fascinating new stats looking at how working interacts with age and how that's changed post pandemic. Previously mostly linked to age with oldest workers working from home. But now those in their mid careers most want to (or most able to?) work from home www.thephoenixgroup.com/phoenix-insi...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 20/11/2024

It's #equalpayday The average woman in the UK never earns more than £20 an hour at any age. Average man earns more than £20 /hr each year from their mid 30s to 60. It impacts day to day and over a lifetime www.thephoenixgroup.com/phoenix-insi...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 20/11/2024

The UK is rapidly entering middle age - find out how we save, work and retire is changing www.thephoenixgroup.com/phoenix-insi...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 20/11/2024

The average worker is 4 years older today than was the case in the mid 90s. But there is huge sectoral variance Agricultural workers remain oldest (over 48 on avg today) Education less than 1yr older, Transport 9+ Accommodation and food services is only sector that is younger (under 35 today avg)

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 20/11/2024

We have higher employment rates for all ages once people do enter work. Particularly higher employment rates over the age of 50, and even more so among self employed. But is that always through choice? And is work giving people what they want and need?

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 20/11/2024

People enter, and exit work later in life Young people stay in education longer and we've got less of a cliff edge to entering retirement

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 20/11/2024

People today retire 5 years later on average than they did in 1994. And women retire 7 years later. The state pension age has changed, but so has the jobs we do and the way we think about work

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 22/10/2024

It's a great visual Ages which are big net tax contributors (30s-60s) are the opinion formers, gatekeepers, decision makers in politics, media, business, society. Have forgotten what they owe from childhood (education), and haven't yet experienced the health, social care, NHS benefits to come

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 13/10/2024

Google analytics trying to parse why someone has suddenly gone on a highly erratic 12 mile bike ride (lost child - all ok in the end)

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Patrick Thomson @patrickjthomson.bsky.social · 20/09/2024

"Inspirational" wall art from DWP regional office c.2014. This particular poster was displaying our value of "commitment"

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