Radical changes must be made to the worlds of work and saving, Lord Turnbull, the former cabinet secretary and head of the Treasury warned yesterday, ashe highlighted the challenges posed by an ageing population.

He predicted "four, five and even six generation families will become common, so that a woman in her late 40s may be trying to divide her time between a first grandchild, a frail 73-year-old mother, an even frailer 95-year-old grandfather and a great-grandmother aged over 100 and requiring constant care.