This year's conference will be held online and will explore four key themes in a series of short webinars across four days:

• Investing in a just transition to a low carbon economy
• Extending workplace pensions coverage to those workers currently excluded
• Ensuring more workers can benefit from collective pension schemes
• Rethinking the balance between state and workplace pensions

Day 4: Thursday 18th March 13:00-14:40

Rethinking the role of the state pension

The UK provides a significantly lower state pension than most comparable countries, and relies more heavily on occupational pensions to provide retirement incomes for its citizens. Our system is deeply ingrained and has its merits, but is it time to rethink this balance? Would a bigger role for the state pension reduce pensioner poverty and inequality?

Panel debate

- Dr Bernhard Ebbinghaus, professor of social policy, University of Oxford

- Nathalie Diesbecq, ACV-CSC (Christian Federation of Trade Unions, Belgium)

Closing keynote

- Jonathan Reynolds, shadow secretary of state for work and pensions