Speaker(s): Professor Rebeca Aldunate, Nicci Gerrard, Professor Michael Murphy, Jane Vass | With the average life expectancy increasing from 66.7 in 1942 to 81.25 in 2017, and set to continue, population ageing is poised to become one of the most significant social transformations of the 21st century. This panel discusses how ageing could come to dominate the giant issue of health and social care, and potentially all areas of the welfare state. Rebeca Aldunate is Director of the Biotechnology School, Faculty of Science at Universidad Santo Tomás, Chile. Nicci Gerrard (@FrenchNicci) is the co-author, with Sean French, of the bestselling Nicci French psychological thrillers and has written six novels under her own name, including The Winter House and Missing Persons. She was on the staff of The Observer for many years and still writes for that paper, in 2016 winning the Orwell Prize for 'Exposing Britain's Social Ills'. She is also a co-founder of John’s Campaign, that fights for more compassionate care in hospital for people with dementia, and a humanist celebrant. Michael Murphy is Professor of Demography in the Department of Social Policy at LSE, having joined the School in 1980. He is a Fellow of the British Academy, the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. He has acted as an adviser to UK and US Governments, and international organisations, such as EU, UN and OECD. His current research areas include demographic modelling of ageing and mortality trends, social care and living arrangements and well-being of older people. Jane Vass is Director of Policy and Research at Age UK since April 2015. Prior to this Jane was Head of Public Policy at Age UK from 2012, having joined Age UK’s predecessor, Age Concern England as Financial Services Policy Adviser in 2006. Carrie Friese (@CarrieFriese) is Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at LSE. Her research is in medical sociology and science and technology studies, with a focus on reproduction across humans and animals. Update, Wednesday 21 February: Due to unforeseen circumstances, Olivia Casanueva and Joanna Latimer are no longer able to speak at this event, but we are delighted to be joined by Rebeca Aldunate.