The Conservatives aim to speed up planned rises in the state retirement age if elected to ease pressure on government finances, shadow chancellor George Osborne will say on Tuesday.

The Conservatives, who well ahead of the Labour party in opinion polls, are fleshing out how they might govern Britain before an election that must be called by June 2010.

Whichever party wins will face record government borrowing -- set to hit 175 billion pounds, or more than 12 percent of gross domestic product -- this year, putting government spending plans at the heart of the election battle.

"Our aim is to bring forward the date when the pension age rises," Osborne will tell his annual party conference in Manchester, according to extracts of his speech.

"We will ensure that no increase will happen until the second half of the next decade -- in the parliament after next. No one who is a pensioner today, or approaching retirement soon, will be affected, but this is how we can afford increasing the basic state pension for all."

The Conservatives have said they want to restore a link between state pensions and earnings.

The pension age for women is due to rise to 65 from 60 between 2010 and 2020 to bring it in line with men. The unified pension age will then be increased to 68 by 2046, starting with an increase to 66 by 2026.