The society should be responsible for the destiny of people of older generation. We understand that people that lived through hardships of war; created considerable production, scientific and technical, intellectual potential in the country are currently experiencing a heavy burden of financial and psychological problems. These people have the right to be proud of their past. They are entitled to decent life today and in future. Social democrats understand that a group of old people is nostalgic of the past and this is being used to the advantage of political forces interested in restoration of the past. The task of social democrats is to strengthen activity in the organisations uniting pensioners, veterans to convince them that future for Ukraine is with social democracy. People of old age should feel constant care and assistance on the part of the state and society. To provide them with decent conditions of life is one of the priorities of our policy.

We are against the attempts of extending pension age of people in the country. Taking into account complex conditions of life of pensioners, difficulties they had to overcome, we consider the current pension age adequate. The state should create conditions to efficiently use pensioners' labour, provide additional training of ageing people, ensure that they are adapted to new conditions of life. Additional privileges should be granted to those pensioners that work at the enterprises they set up themselves.

An important task for SDPU(U) is to carry out pension reform aimed at creating higher social standards of pension security by gradual transformation to combined type of pension system. This should be three-pillar system and consist of reformed system of state security and non-state pensions paid out of voluntary pension savings of people.

Within the framework of transitional period the level of basic state pension granted to all disabled people that reached pension age and became invalids should be increased to the level that is equal to the cost of living of those insufficiently provided for. This should serve the basis to form labour (insurance) pensions. Calculation of these pensions is based on term of work, salary allocations to Pension Fund and additional pensions paid according to regional and branch pension systems or pension systems of some subjects of economic activity. We intent to participate in developing mechanisms of transition to mandatory accrued pension system with fixed salary allocations.

We support the development of private insurance that gives better well off people an opportunity to improve pension security by paying out non-state pensions. We will, in all ways, contribute to the development and adoption of laws aimed at enhancing people's interest in long-term savings at the non-public pension funds.

Social experiments as to pension reform implementation in several regions of Ukraine targeted for the future should not put off implementation of decisive measure on improving pension security. The most important of those are:

. unconditional timely payment of pensions;

. gradual increase of minimal pensions to the level of living wage;

. indexing of pensions in accordance with real growth of cost of living.

We support development of various forms of in-kind help provided to old people: free lunches, goods and medication sold at discount prices, affordable social services. Supported by local administration bodies, we consider it necessary to create specialised centres for pensioners that would combine the features and services provided by boarding houses and unions of people with similar interests, create conditions for the pensioners to do work they are capable of and provide them necessary consulting assistance. Special attention should be paid to old, sick and lonely people. It is necessary to develop a network of houses for disabled and lonely people; hospitals for chronic invalids. Every needy should be provided for with decent conditions of life and necessary medical care.