It has been revealed by the European Commission that Great Britain has one of the highest levels of poverty among over-65s in Europe.

A study by the group shows that the UK has the fourth highest level of poverty among retirees in the 27 member states of the European Union, with many pensioners living on incomes well below the national breadline.

With the financial downturn and general financial struggles among the demographic, people over 65-years-old are less able to balance economic problems with additional work. Such issues could result in an increase for debt aid.

Presently the rate of pensioner poverty in the UK stands at 30%. This is worryingly higher than the EU average of 19%.

In 2006, the European Centre warned that Great Britain had one of the highest poverty risks among its elderly population in the EU.

Brendan Paddy, of Age Concern and Help The Aged, said: "The findings are quite shocking, particularly because some years ago we were beginning to see poverty amongst older people in the UK begin to drop, but that progress has now very definitely stalled."

Redundancy levels soar - as do debt levels

In similar news, the increasing number of Brits facing a possible future in debt has soared, as redundancy levels continue to climb.

A financial help group said it has seen a 100% jump in the number of calls it receives regarding redundancy over the past year alone.

As a result, the organisation has launched a weekend phone line to deal with the mass influx and to also help individuals who have plunged into credit debt.

In addition to this, the number of cases for unfair dismissal being brought to its attention has increased dramatically, to as high as 15,000 per week.

Ed Sweeney, chairman of the group, said: "The figures underline the strain that businesses and individuals have had to face in the last year."

He also added: "Our helpline, which acts as a barometer for the state of the UK workplace, has seen a huge rise in demand for advice on redundancies."

Firms cutting jobs to cut costs

This suggests that many UK adults are now facing long-term debt woes after being laid off by employers keen to reduce their overheads as quickly as possible.

The workers who do not get sacked may be in a similar financial position, as bosses are freezing wages, in an attempt to save money in the downturn.

However, this act is leaving many employees in serious debt. While a number of major players have argued over recent weeks that such practice is vital for their survival, the Institute of Employment Rights, (IER) has now claimed that some firms are freezing wages unfairly.

As a result, employees will have no other choice but to seek debt help. IER director Carolyn Jones, commented on the practice:

She said: "I think it's outrageous, and I do think that as in other periods of recession companies will take the opportunity to shake out and introduce lean and mean measures to slim down their companies, without any regard to the impact that will have on struggling families.

"It seems to me that workers are being asked to pay for a crisis that is not of their making."

Meanwhile, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) has warned in its latest report that unemployment in the UK could hit three million by 2011.