The High Court has ruled that the UK retirement age of 65 was lawful when introduced thee years ago and that it will remain in place until a government review in 2010.

In the ruling Mr Justice Blake said he recognised the "very substantial weight" of arguments put forward to increase or even scrap the retirement age but was satisfied that the government has brought forward their review of the issue from 2011 to 2010.

Business groups have welcomed the ruling, as many believe that the recession is the wrong time to bring in new employment legislation.

"This was the right decision as the vast majority of businesses value their older employees and the considerable experience that they can bring to a firm. We do not believe there is evidence of widespread use or abuse of the system; only one in four businesses we surveyed use the default retirement age," said Dr Adam Marshall, Director of Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce.