Thousands rally in Spain in support of pension scheme

Tens of thousands people on Saturday staged a demonstration in Madrid in support of the country's state pension scheme.

Protesters held a march across the capital demanding pensions to remain indexed to inflation and the gender pension gap to be eliminated.

Some 50,000 people, according to the organizers, while the government reported 25,000, chanted slogans in support of the state pension scheme, including "pensions aren’t for sale, pensions are to be defended," "widows and widowers will not be silenced" and "here they are, these are the ones fighting for your pension," according to the El Pais newspaper.

The protesters expressed concern over the state pension scheme, which could be weakened depending on who wins next month’s snap election. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has accused the right-wing Popular Party (PP) of planning to weaken inflation-linked pension increases.

The country’s monthly pension bill hit a record high this year of some $16.2 billion. The pressure is driven by several factors such as an ageing population, a low birth rate and wage stagnation.

Protests have lately been seen across many countries in Europe, including Italy, France and Belgium, over a range of issues such as rising costs of living and poor school conditions.