Conflict between generations, the possibility suggested by your title, need not come about. We can reconcile the aspirations of older people for good, secure, long lives with the legitimate concerns of society about minimising the costs of longer lives. Europe will be able to cope - if we get our policies right. Think, for a moment, of how we have adapted our social structures during this 20th century. The family used to be the sole framework for intergenerational solidarity.
Families are still vitally important.
But today the State and other public institutions supplement their work and are the main providers of income and healthcare for older people, just as they have a substantial role in the care and education of children. These principles have been developed in Europe during the second half of this century to a highly sophisticated level. They are, to my mind, one of Europe's greatest achievements. Simultaneously, we have created the possibility for people to live longer, healthier lives - this too is one of the century's great achievements. Life expectancy has almost doubled.