Press Releases

“The heightened focus on managing asset cashflows to meet liability cashflows is very welcome. However, trustees may be surprised to find out that the models used to measure and manage risk and return typically don’t allow for the primary reason schemes hold assets: i.e. for income to pay the pensions promised. Given this, how confident can trustees be in model driven asset recommendations?

We dedicate 2% of our annual profits to an extensive list of charities working with communities the length and breadth of Britain. In 2016, this amounted to an impressive £146,292, to be divided between our three core charitable areas.

Steven Baxter, head of longevity research at Club Vita responds to the findings that the universal State Pension age (SPa) will be retained in reflection of a narrowing socio-economic longevity gap and bringing good news for intergenerational fairness. A balance needs to be struck in society between avoiding pensioner poverty and ensuring intergenerational fairness.

The CWU’s proposals for greater pension risk sharing between employers and employees for Royal Mail’s pension scheme take us back to the future. Back in the 1970s DB pension schemes had these type of pressure release valves which successive layers of legislation have stripped away.

FCA’s publication of proposals for final salary pension mis-selling redress underscores the need for DB scheme members to be better supported. If schemes facilitated the advice process this could save £4bn in advice costs across UK DB, and help the 1 million DB members likely to explore their options over the next 10-20 years make better decisions.

In this Sixty Second Summary we provide an overview of Philip Hammond's Spring Budget announcements relating to QROPS transfers, money purchase annual allowance and other items.

The increased tax take could be at the expense of people having enough to take them through retirement. Trustees have a moral duty to support scheme members with complex choices at retirement

Allowing individuals to make tax free withdrawals from pension pots to pay for care have been mooted – but the average pot size today is £27k, and the average cost of residential care even without nursing is £30k per annum. At current savings levels there is little hope of pensions filling the gap in paying for social care.

Will individuals engage with the fact that they might need care, and will they see it as their responsibility or indeed a necessity to cover those costs themselves when the Government provides a backstop for those who can’t afford it?”

Today the average DC pot size is £27k*. To put this in context it costs £30k per annum for care without nursing rising to £40k per annum with nursing

Today the average DC pot size is £27k. To put this in context it costs £30k per annum for care without nursing rising to £40k per annum with nursing

The PLSA taskforce’s thinking is out of step with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP’s) Green Paper on the sustainability of DB pensions issued just two weeks ago.