A report conducted by The Department for Work and Pensions and reported on by Recruiting Times has found that in 1950 men left the labour market at an average age of 67 whereas women did the same at 63.

Compare these figures with 2017 and we see that men now retire at 65 and women retire generally a few months’ shy of 63.

So why are we retiring younger?

Well, this all comes in the wake of the government announcing that the state pension age will rise to 68 for both men and women between 2037 and 2039.

Senior analyst at AJ Bell, Tom Selby comments: “The rise in average retirement ages is only going to accelerate in the decades to come as the state pension age increases further and the number of people retiring with generous defined benefit entitlements falls away.

“We will also see more people working longer, either full-time or part-time, in order to supplement their retirement income.

“For some, this won’t be a problem, but for those in more strenuous or physically demanding roles, the thought of retiring later will be difficult to stomach. But the stark reality is that, if life expectancy keeps going up, many will be staring a retirement age of 70 or older square in the face.”