WHEN the Soviet Union started paying pensions in the early years of Josef Stalin’s rule, the retirement age was set at 60 for men and 55 for women. It has not been raised since. Experts have urged change for decades, but squeamish politicians have balked. Vladimir Putin declared in 2005 that it would not go up as long as he was president.
So it was with trepidation on June 14th, a month into Mr Putin’s fourth presidential term, that the government revealed plans to raise the retirement age to 65 for men and 63 for women. They announced the move along with an increase in value-added tax from 18% to 20%, hoping to bury the bad news under the opening of the World Cup that day.
Yet Russians have taken notice. Some 2.5m have signed an online petition opposing the change; according to a government pollster, Mr Putin’s approval ratings dropped to “only” 72% on June 17th, levels not seen since before the annexation of Crimea. “They want to solve the government’s money problems at...Continue reading
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