December 2023
19Dec

UK. Pensions are far from broken but could still use a fix

There aren’t too many areas of public policy where we in the UK can feel we have done a better job than in comparable countries. Our state pension system is, arguably, one of them. What we have is vaguely coherent and more affordable than most. It forms part of a system which, alongside widespread private provision and additional means-tested support for the poorest, results in many enjoying a relatively comfortable old age, and far fewer than in the past...

December 19, 2023
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05Dec

US. Santos-inspired bill would ban pensions for expelled lawmakers

A House Republican on Monday introduced legislation barring lawmakers who are expelled from Congress from receiving congressional pensions. Why it matters: It's a direct response to the House's expulsion last week of then-Rep. George Santos, who was accused of plundering his congressional campaign coffers to personally enrich himself. Driving the news: Rep. Zach Nunn (R-Iowa) announced the Congressional Pension Accountability Act at a press conference on Monday morning. Nunn was among the more than 100 Republicans who voted to expel Santos following the release of...

December 5, 2023
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November 2023
23Nov

UK to increase state pension by 8.5%, sticks with ‘triple lock’ commitment

Britain's publicly funded state pension will increase by 8.5% from April 2024, finance minister Jeremy Hunt said on Wednesday. The increase is based on average earnings data published in September and was in line with the government's "triple lock" policy on pension changes. The triple lock is a government promise to raise the value of publicly funded pensions by whichever is highest out of the level of earnings, inflation or 2.5%. Ahead of Hunt's budget update statement, media reports had suggested he...

November 23, 2023
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21Nov

US. State pension plans’ funded status improves

The median state pension plan funded status improved last year to 82.6% from 68.5%, according to data provided by Fitch Ratings. The rating agency's adjusted funded measure, which caps the assumed investment return at 6%, was 73.5% vs. 60.2% in 2021. States dropped their assumed rate of return in 2022, continuing a trend going back at least several years. Last year, the average fell to 6.88% compared with 7.6% in 2015. The number of states making at least 100% contributions compared...

November 21, 2023
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15Nov

US federal pension fund to exclude Hong Kong and China investments

The main US federal government pension fund is to exclude China- and Hong Kong-listed stocks on the recommendation of its adviser, which cited the rising tensions between the world’s two largest economies. The $771bn Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board said on Wednesday that it would change the benchmark index followed by its international fund. The move will mean a shift away from an index that includes Hong Kong-listed equities. Washington has increasingly limited the range of Chinese companies available to US...

November 15, 2023
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08Nov

Parliament rejects move to reinstate pensions for MPs: Bahrain

A MOVE to reinstate lifetime pensions for elected and appointed public representatives has been shot down. Of the 31 MPs present in Parliament during its weekly session yesterday, 26 voted against reinstating the 2009 MPs, Shura Council and Municipal Council Members’ Pension Law, four abstained and only Jalal Khadim endorsed the proposal. Under the rejected legislation, public representatives would have be entitled to annual increases in pensions similar to others in the private, government and military sectors. The legislation also sought to...

November 8, 2023
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October 2023
24Oct

U.S. state pension plans’ funding ratios fall in Q3

U.S. state pension plans' aggregate funding ratios fell in the third quarter to the lowest level since the end of 2022, according to Wilshire Advisors estimates. For the quarter ended Sept. 30, the estimated ratio dropped by 3 percentage points from three months earlier to 75.2%, the result of an estimated 3% decrease in asset values exacerbated by an estimated 0.8% increase in liability values. It is the lowest estimated ratio since Dec. 31, when Wilshire estimated an aggregate funding ratio...

October 24, 2023
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12Oct

Pension deal agreed for UK academics but divisions over pay remain unsolved

University staff will have their pension benefits restored by next April under an agreement reached between Universities UK (UUK) and the University and College Union (UCU), which represents over 120,000 researchers and teaching staff. UCU members have taken 69 days of strike action since 2018 to defend their pension benefits. But the union has vowed to keep the pressure on as it seeks concessions on pay and job security. UCU has balloted its members and will know by the...

October 12, 2023
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September 2023
19Sep

Brits calling for state pensions to be raised to £416 a week for every person over 60

Brits are calling for state pensions to be raised to £416 a week in line with the National Minimum Wage after previous efforts failed. A new petition has been set up calling on ministers to increase the allowance to more than double the current figure, despite a previous one which racked up more than 36,000 signatures being rejected by the DWP. The latest calls are being made by Michael Thompson, who is also demanding the UK pension age is lowered...

September 19, 2023
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08Sep

UK. Triple lock could add £45bn a year to state pensions bill by 2050, IFS says

Maintaining the triple lock on state pensions could add as much as £45bn a year to the welfare bill by 2050, putting “insurmountable pressure” on the government to increase the minimum retirement age, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies. In a report published ahead of the release next week of official data for earnings growth, which will be used to set the annual increase in pensions, the IFS estimates spending on retirees could rise by a further £2bn from...

September 8, 2023
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