About half of all UK defined benefit pension funds are now targeting a buy-out as their long-term objective, new research shows. A survey of 100 DB pension scheme trustees by consultancy Hymans Robertson revealed the number of pension funds aiming for self-sufficiency has dropped markedly in the past four years, down to just 37% from 81%. Now, the number of funds aiming for a buy-out has increased to 49% - up from just 15% four years ago. The remaining...
By Research and Markets The total UK pensions market grew 16.1% to £16.4bn annual premium equivalent (APE) in 2019. Workplace pensions drove growth as minimum pension contributions increased to 8%. Direct benefit to direct contribution transfers continue as companies de-risk and individuals take advantage of pension freedoms. COVID-19 will bring uncertainty to saving for retirement. The UK economy has officially entered into recession and disposable incomes are set to fall as unemployment rises. This will force many individuals to...
Trustees of pensions schemes could soon be getting more powers to halt suspicious pension transfers, according to the Pension Scams Industry Group. Read also More sponsors in U.K. embrace outsourcing The group said an amendment restricting the statutory right to a transfer is to be tabled to the pension schemes bill by two MPs, in an attempt to combat pension scams. Read also Ireland. State’s pension scheme for public servants ‘more sustainable’ It had proposed the amendment in its submission to...
Today in Britain, we know that our population over the age of 65 is growing. By 2024, 24 per cent will be over 65. In my own constituency of Grantham and Stamford, 30 per cent of the population today is over the age of 65. Britain may be getting older, but our pensions system needs to be modernised. The government’s Pension Scheme Bill aims to do exactly that. The bill does three things. Firstly it gives The Pensions Regulator...
The age at which most people start to receive the state pension has now officially hit 66 after steady rises in the qualifying age in recent years. Men and women born between 6 October, 1954, and 5 April, 1960, will start receiving their pension on their 66th birthday. For those born after that, there will be a phased increase in state pension age to 67, and eventually 68. It comes as the chancellor vowed the "triple lock" pledge is...
The British government launched a new employment programme on Monday aimed at helping those left jobless due to the COVID-19 pandemic to get back into work. The Department for Work and Pensions said the Job Entry Targeted Support (JETS) scheme would be backed by a 238 million pound investment. The ministry said jobseekers put forward for the scheme would have access to tailored, flexible support to quickly get back into employment. This could involve specialist advice on how people...
Multiemployer providers see influx as plan trustees move to cut costs, meet regulations Multiemployer plan providers in the U.K. are winning more defined contribution business as sponsoring employers have been more decisive about outsourcing under the pandemic-induced lockdown. The heightened interest comes as U.K. employers were already increasingly considering outsourcing plan assets to multiemployer plans, known in the U.K. as master trusts, to cut costs at a time when the government has been increasing trustee duties and decreasing support....
The two fintechs are calling on the FCA to speed up the introduction of Open Finance to help people view their pensions all in one place. Digital pension provider PensionBee and financial API provider Plaid have joined forces to push for an open finance standard within the pension industry. In a report published by the pair yesterday, Plaid and PensionBee are calling for ‘open pensions’ to be made standard, something which they claim will “improve financial decisions”...
Savers have been warned they could face trouble in the future as the regulator found 42 per cent were taking more than 8 per cent from their pensions each year. Read also UK. PensionBee and Plaid team up to call for ‘open pensions’ Latest data on the retirement income market from the Financial Conduct Authority, published yesterday (September 29), found savers with smaller pension pots, typically worth between £10,000 and £100,000, were particularly susceptible to high withdrawal rates. Read also...
The UK’s Public Accounts Committee (Pac) and National Audit Office (NAO) have taken aim at the government, claiming that HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) “does not understand the impact of the largest tax reliefs”. Responding to the Pac report on the management of tax reliefs, the government said that a review into the impact of pensions tax relief is not needed, as it has already been assesed through other consultations. These include looking at the administration of...
