Would you consider being a Deliveroo rider?

More than 3.4 million people aged between 50 and 65 are classed as economically inactive

The over-50s should consider delivering takeaways and other flexible jobs traditionally targeted at young people if they want to maintain their lifestyle into old age, a cabinet minister has said.

In an interview with The Times, Mel Stride, the work and pensions secretary, said older people needed to be thinking about jobs they “might not have otherwise thought of” if their finances were stretched.

About 8.6 million people, equivalent to one in five working adults, are classed as economically inactive, according to the Office for National Statistics. More than 3.4 million of them are over 50 but under the retirement age.

Stride said he did not want to imply there was anything wrong with retiring early, but that it was his “mission” to “try and open people’s eyes to what their current situation is and what the opportunities are”.

The minister was speaking on a visit to the food delivery firm Deliveroo’s headquarters in London. The company has recorded a 62 per cent increase in riders aged over 50 since 2021.

Asked if the over-50s should apply for jobs traditionally seen as being for younger people, Stride replied: “There are loads of great opportunities out there for people and it’s of course good for people to consider options they might not have otherwise thought of.”

He said of firms such as Deliveroo: “What we’re seeing here is the ability to log on and off anytime you like, no requirement to have to do a certain number of hours over a certain period of time, which is driving huge opportunities . . . From an employer’s point of view in a tight labour market, it’s absolutely essential if you want to access all the available talent that you provide as flexible an offer as you can.”

What are your views? Have you considered a job you “might not have otherwise thought of” due to stretched finances? Would you consider being a Deliveroo rider?