In the developed world, average life expectancy is increasing. What problems will this cause for individuals and society? Suggest some measures that could be taken to reduce the impact of ageing populations
It is true that
people
in industrialised nations can expect to live longer than ever before. Although
there will undoubtedly be some negative consequences of this
trend, societies can take steps to mitigate these potential problems
. As people
live longer and the populations of developed countries grow older, several related problems
can be anticipated. The main issue is that there will obviously be more people
of retirement age who will be eligible to receive a pension. The proportion of younger, working adults
will be smaller, and governments will therefore
receive less money in taxes in relation to the size of the population. In other words
, an ageing population will mean a greater tax burden for working adults
. Further
pressures will include a rise in the demand for healthcare,
and the fact young Remove the comma
apply
adults
will increasingly have to look after their elderly relatives. There are several actions that governments could take to solve the problems
described above. Firstly
, a simple solution would be to increase the retirement age for working adults
, perhaps from 65 to 70. Nowadays, people
of this
age tend to be healthy enough to continue a productive working life. A second measure would be for governments to encourage immigration in order to increase the number of working adults
who pay taxes. Finally
, money from national budgets will need to be taken from other areas and spent on vital healthcare, accommodation and transport facilities for the rising numbers of older citizens. In conclusion, various measures can be taken to tackle the problems
that are certain to arise as the populations of countries grow older.Submitted by Andy on
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Structure your answers in logical paragraphs
The easiest way to score well on the IELTS Task 2 writing portion is to structure your writing in a solid essay format.
A strong argument essay structure can be split up into 4 paragraphs, each containing 4 sentences (except the conclusion paragraph, which only contains 3 sentences).
Stick to this essay structure:
- Paragraph 1 - Introduction
- Paragraph 2 - First supporting paragraph
- Paragraph 3 - Second supporting paragraph
- Paragraph 4 - Conclusion