pensionsandsavings.com

  • PENSIONSANDSAVINGS.COM

    From Ros Altmann:economist and pensions,
    investment and retirement policy expert

    • pensionsandsavings.com

    pensionsandsavings.com

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    Category: Pensions

    Huge Gender Pensions Gap – International Women’s Day is a chance to highlight need for action on women’s pensions

    Huge Gender Pensions Gap – International Women’s Day is a chance to highlight need for action on women’s pensions

    Comments 3 comments

    Gender Pensions Gap much worse than Gender Pay Gap. Women lose out in both State and Private pensions because of their social role. Budget could fix pension system cracks that women are falling through. Let’s close gender pensions gap and encourage women to take responsibility for their pensions. Ahead of International Women’s Day, I thought it might be timely to write about the shocking gap between men and women’s pensions, which still exists in 21st Century Britain. Women are the…

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    ABI release on pension freedoms – customers need independent guidance or advice, not a provider’s helpline

    ABI release on pension freedoms – customers need independent guidance or advice, not a provider’s helpline

    Comments 1 comment

    ABI report confirms that the pensions industry needs to do more to ensure customers are properly informed and protected.   Pension provider helplines are no substitute for impartial, independent guidance and advice.   Pension Schemes Bill offers an opportunity for Government to introduce requirements for better customer protection against premature or fraudulent transfers.   First line of defence would see providers ask relevant questions to help identify scams. Second line of defence would be ensuring people have impartial guidance or…

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    Pensions tax relief changes – legacy of Gordon Brown’s pension raid should be a warning to the new Chancellor

    Pensions tax relief changes – legacy of Gordon Brown’s pension raid should be a warning to the new Chancellor

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    Removing higher rate tax relief from pensions is a lose-lose proposition which helps nobody and hurts millions.  Reforming pension incentives is enormously complicated and Treasury should beware of unintended consequences. Recent changes to Pension Allowances designed to reduce pension tax relief for higher earners  fuelled an NHS crisis, showing the dangers of chasing political headlines and short-term cost saving. Government should not be undermining saving incentives when debt is already at record levels.  Any reform of tax relief should improve…

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    Making the State Pension more flexible should focus on State Pension Age

    Making the State Pension more flexible should focus on State Pension Age

    Comments 1 comment

    State Pension flexibility could be welcome, but for State Pension Age, not amount of pension. Just allowing people to take part of their State Pension, while still requiring them to wait to an ever-rising State Pension age, will not remedy the injustices in the current system. We already have the lowest state pension in the developed world and receiving only part of it will just add complexity, but will not help those in failing health or caring for others. Current…

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    State Pension after Brexit and frozen pensioners

    State Pension after Brexit and frozen pensioners

    Comments 5 comments

    Good news for British expats in Europe as Withdrawal Agreement guarantees their State Pensions will not be frozen. Government should now reassure these pensioners that, whatever happens after 2020, they have lifelong state pension uprating.   However this is only for expats already in Europe by year-end. Government must warn people of the risk that future retirees who move to Spain, France or other European countries after 2020 may have their pension frozen. This note deals with the question of…

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    NHS pension crisis won’t be solved by tinkering with the taper rules

    NHS pension crisis won’t be solved by tinkering with the taper rules

    Comments 2 comments

    NHS pension crisis won’t be resolved by raising Tapered Annual Allowance threshold.  Senior staff need certainty that their pension ‘benefits’ do not become a costly penalty for extra work. Government must abolish unworkable taper rules, not just tweak them. I have suggested my own 10-point action plan for addressing the crisis.   It is of course reasonable for the Government to look to control the costs of tax incentives: The TAA was originally announced as reducing the £40,000 annual contributions…

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    Let’s celebrate the PPF’s success

    Let’s celebrate the PPF’s success

    Comments 2 comments

    Let’s celebrate the Pension Protection Fund as Carillion becomes its 1000th pension scheme.    PPF has been a real success story, with around a quarter of a million members having their pensions underwritten after their employer schemes failed.    Before PPF existed, members could lose their entire life savings and their pension. I am delighted to see the ongoing success of the Pension Protection Fund (PPF). Carillion has just become the 1000th scheme to enter the pensions lifeboat and its…

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    Govt commitment to reform NHS pensions may pave the way for radical pension tax relief reform too

    Govt commitment to reform NHS pensions may pave the way for radical pension tax relief reform too

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    Could Government commitment to sort out NHS pensions herald radical pension reform?  NHS problems are canary in the coalmine showing need to urgently change pensions tax rules.  Tapered Annual Allowance and Lifetime Allowance should be changed or abolished.  Reforming the £50billion annual cost of pensions tax reliefs (which gives top earners most help) could raise much-needed revenue AND improve pension outcomes. Reforms that could introduce new one-nation pension incentives and also save money include: Give everyone the same top-up to…

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    Time for Government to force pension firms to send plain English statements to their customers so they can understand pensions

    Time for Government to force pension firms to send plain English statements to their customers so they can understand pensions

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    Government should force pension firms to send simpler, standardised annual statements.   It’s time for pension providers to help customers understand their pensions, not leave them baffled by jargon. Pensions Dashboard will not work without standardisation – and accurate data.   Annual pension statements could be sent for customer’s birthday wishing ‘many happy returns’! New statements should be promoted and explained by national public information campaign. Showing forecast pension at two ages e.g 60 and 67 could offer positive behavioural…

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    Conservative Manifesto pensions tax commitment would give over a million low paid women more money

    Conservative Manifesto pensions tax commitment would give over a million low paid women more money

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    Net Pay Action Group has ‘oven-ready’ proposals to end injustice of forcing low-paid workers to pay 25% surcharge on their pensions.  New Government can improve income and pension prospects for more than one million women.  Honouring the Conservative manifesto commitment will ensure lowest earners get the Government contribution to their pensions.   The Net Pay Action group has submitted proposals that will allow the Government to honour its manifesto commitment to address the injustice faced by workers earning below £12,500…

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