One in five people in the European Union are over 65 years old, i.e. around 20% of the EU population.

Omissions

• The exact Eurostat figure is 22.0% (1 January 2025), i.e. 'more than one-fifth', so the rhetorical rounding to 'one in five' (20%) understates the real share by about 2 percentage points.
• The most recent Eurostat data available at the session date refers to 1 January 2025; the relevant source (Demography of Europe – 2026 edition) was published on 21 May 2026, before the 8 October 2026 session, so the MEP could have known it.
• The share of people aged 65+ has been rising steadily (Eurostat reports increases in all EU countries between 2005 and 2025), so the trend supports the claim.

Sources

• PrimaryEurostat – Population structure and ageing (Statistics Explained)On 1 January 2025, the EU population was estimated at 450.6 million people and more than one-fifth (22.0%) of it was aged 65 years and over.
• PrimaryEurostat – Demography of Europe, 2026 edition (interactive publication)On 1 January 2025, there were 99 million people aged 65 years old or more, representing 22% of the total EU population.
• PrimaryEurostat News – Demography of Europe: 2026 edition out nowDemography of Europe – 2026 edition interactive publication is out today, bringing you the latest key data on the EU population (data reference: 1 January 2025).