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Important House of Lords debate on saving Investment Trusts from further damage

February 29, 2024 Ros Altmann Comments 0 Comment

HOUSE OF LORDS WILL DEBATE LEGISLATION TO SAVE UK INVESTMENT COMPANIES AS INVESTMENT TRUSTS HIT BY NEW WAVES OF SELLING. Second Reading of Private Members’ Bill tomorrow has cross-party support and could offer quickest legislative route to revitalize sector and stop further damage. Chancellor wanted urgent change but Regulators have failed to deliver so Parliament is being asked to take back control as quickly as possible. Summary of Main Points: Tomorrow, 1st March, House of Lords will debate important…

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Time for Ministers to intervene on Investment Trusts, as FCA has failed to achieve change

February 19, 2024 Ros Altmann Comments 2 comments

Emergency intervention to protect UK investment trusts from flawed Regulations could turbocharge UK markets and growth while boosting investor returns. Ministers must no longer leave it to the FCA to keep dithering and consulting while their misleading rules destroy investor support on a false premise. UK-listed investment trusts help democratise investing for retail and institutional investors in long-term, less liquid assets such as infrastructure, growth businesses and renewable energy. Ministers must no longer leave it to the FCA to keep…

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12 reasons why raising State Pension Age to 71 should be unconscionable

February 5, 2024 Ros Altmann Comments 2 comments

12 reasons why raising State Pension Age to 71 by 2040, suggested by today’s ILC Report, is unconscionable and favours well-pensioned higher income groups. Anyone in their early-fifties and younger would be caught by this proposal – plunging more into poverty in later life. Only the top 10% of the UK population stay healthy to their early 70s. Cutting costs by making unwell workers wait longer, favours the well-pensioned higher paid. The State Pension is part of every worker’s social…

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My comments on new DB Funding Code for occupational pensions

January 30, 2024 Ros Altmann Comments 1 comment

NEW DB FUNDING CODE MOVES AWAY FROM RECKLESS CONSERVATISM. Big improvement on previous proposals which would have driven most schemes into supposedly low-risk bonds, while giving up on long-term investment returns. Regulations are published at last after six years but new Regulatory Guidance is still not ready – schemes need it urgently to prepare ahead of September 2024 start. The new code may help some scheme trustees back more productive finance but the delays have meant fewer schemes will do…

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Pension Regulator guidance for unlisted investments adds huge risk, doesn’t support the UK and ignores smaller listed companies

January 24, 2024 Ros Altmann Comments 1 comment

Pensions Regulator’s new guidance, encouraging pension funds to invest 5% in unlisted assets, adds significant risk, and ignores the value in listed UK equities which are only 4% of many pension portfolios. Unlocking pension capital to support UK growth and businesses is right, but the Mansion House reforms don’t require any of the £70billion taxpayer pension reliefs to be invested in the UK. To really boost Britain, pension funds should buy more listed companies, including ready-made UK-listed investment trusts portfolios…

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Some good news for pensioners but plenty more needed to ensure pension assets do more to boost British growth

November 22, 2023 Ros Altmann Comments 0 Comment

Some good news for pensioners but plenty more needed to ensure pension assets do more to boost British growth. State Pension Triple-Lock: Very good news that the uncertainty for pensioners is over. The Chancellor has confirmed the full 8.5% ‘triple lock’ earnings uprating promise for next year’s State Pension. It would have been very wrong to remove pensioner protection again, after breaking that Manifesto Commitment two years ago. Millions of pensioners (especially women) rely on their State Pensions to make…

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Chancellor should use Autumn Statement to channel UK pension and ISA funds into domestic markets

November 20, 2023 Ros Altmann Comments 0 Comment

The Chancellor should use the Autumn Statement to incentivise tax-favoured pension and ISA funds to back Britain. British taxpayers are spending around £70 billion a year in tax and National Insurance reliefs but most is invested overseas instead of boosting British productivity and long-term growth. At least 25% of each pension fund originates from taxpayers – so Government has justification to ensure a minimum proportion of pension contributions supports our own markets. Introducing a Great British ISA for 2024, to…

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Emergency FCA action needed to prevent collapse of UK investment companies and boost pension fund investment in sustainable growth

November 9, 2023 Ros Altmann Comments 5 comments

Misleading cost disclosures are reducing investments in alternative energy and harming UK growth. UK investment Companies are ready-made for kick-starting pension investment in sustainable UK growth, but FCA charge reporting rules makes them look high-cost, deterring new investors. No more dithering and delay – Government should intervene now to ensure the FCA stops these inappropriate EU-derived charge disclosure rules being applied to UK investment companies. FCA objectives to ensure fair competition, well-functioning, orderly markets, properly informed consumers and accurate charge…

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Glad to see interest rates on hold, but monetary policy may already be excessively tight and rates may need to come down soon

November 2, 2023 Ros Altmann Comments 0 Comment

Glad to see Bank of England decision not to raise rates, but it is worrying that three MPC members wanted to keep tightening. It is a relief that the majority of members decided not to increase interest rates this month, but is still of concern to see three members wanting them to go up by another 0.25 % points. It is hard to understand why rates would need to increase yet again, in the face of major global tensions, leading…

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Bank of England should put rate rises on hold and pause QT

November 1, 2023 Ros Altmann Comments 0 Comment

Bank of England must not raise rates again and should pause QT as tightening has gone too far and wider impacts need to be assessed. Monetary policy operates with lags and there is clear risk of overkill as the massive rate rises in recent months will take time to feed through. QE central bank bond-buying has undermined capital market risk models leaving pension funds and taxpayers exposed to large losses from QT. Bank of England rate rises have gone too…

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