There’s been a lot of talk about the ‘new world’ of pension freedom. But there’s nothing novel about what people need when they retire. Most require an income to replace their wage, just as they always have. So-called pensions freedom is one of ex-Chancellor George Osborne’s great gifts to the nation. From 2015, no longer…
More older workers retiring today benefit from decent workplace pensions than ever before according to figures published by the Office for National Statistics. But changes to pension provision mean these gains are in danger of being reversed, and there is a growing gap between incomes of those with private pensions and those without. The ONS…
Raising the state pension age for women is hitting the poorest hardest – and is having an impact on some men too. Two pieces of research published this week show the dangers of restricting access to the state pension to attempt to force people to work longer. The first was from the Institute for Fiscal Studies. It…
Former Treasury minister David Gauke has been appointed Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. This has prompted speculation that he might bring with him an apparent enthusiasm within parts of the Treasury, and certainly some right-wing think tanks, for converting the current pension regime into one resembling ISAs. At the moment the contributions you…
While the General Election takes centre stage, within Whitehall, a process is quietly going on that could affect the living standards of upwards of 11 million people. Last week, a government consultation on the future of defined benefit (DB) pensions – the type that pay an income based on our salary and length of service – closed to submissions.…
For a while there was a fad among political journalists for asking politicians the price of every day items, to test their understanding of voter’s lives. When it comes to changes to pensions policy, aspiring political leaders should have to prove their understanding of the financial position of future and current pensioners – as well as…
Cleverly harnessing individual inertia to help workers get a workplace pension has been behind the success of automatic enrolment. But government inertia could put its early success at risk. Under automatic enrolment, workers have to actively opt out of membership (soft compulsion) while employers have to make contributions into their pension pots (hard compulsion). The…
The Centre for Policy Studies, which proudly proclaims its links to Margaret Thatcher and Keith Joseph, is perhaps not a natural ally of the TUC. But its latest proposals on retirement income show that on pensions, good policy proposals based on sound evidence and common sense, can come from diverse sources. The explicit aim of…
The benefits system needs to be reshaped to better aid older workers is an important conclusion of the Cridland review of state pension age to be published later today. The full report will be published later this morning, so we only have the briefest details. And, to be clear, the TUC doesn’t agree with several…
Paperwork released with the Budget has revealed what an astonishing short-term money spinner so-called “pensions freedom” has been for the Treasury – and hinted at what a disaster it might prove for our ability to provide for old age. Originally announced in Budget 2014, pensions freedom allows those savers with defined contribution pensions to withdraw…