March 2019

22Mar

UK Pensions Secretary Backs Collective Defined Contribution Plans

Amber Rudd said new type of pension should ‘deliver improved investment returns.’ The UK’s Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd said she supports allowing Collective Defined Contribution (CDC) pension plans in the UK, a decision that was welcomed by postal services provider Royal Mail and the Communication Workers Union (CWU). “These pioneering proposals should deliver improved investment returns for workers and savers while cutting costs and red tape for British job creators,” said Rudd. “The new type of pension...

March 22, 2019
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22Mar

UK. Up To Three Million Self-Employed Workers Turning Their Backs On Pension Pots

Data from accountancy practice Nixon Williams shines a light on the vast numbers of contractors and freelancers snubbing personal pension schemes Study finds the number opting to avoid pension scheme payments has risen 12 per cent in a single year, as the Taylor Review sparks calls for a new auto-enrolment option for self-employed workers. Almost two-thirds (64 per cent) of self-employed people in the UK are avoiding paying money into a personal pension scheme to save for their retirement,...

March 22, 2019
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21Mar

Fund managers turn up heat on UK companies over diversity, pensions, audit

Britain’s big public companies will face a grilling by asset managers over their track record on diversity, excessive pension payouts to bosses and poor quality audits when they hold annual shareholder meetings over the coming weeks. A committee of 15 asset managers at the Investment Association has picked the three issues that annoy investors the most to try to increase pressure for change. It is the first time the IA has specifically set out what changes it wants to...

March 21, 2019
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20Mar

What Japan Can Teach Us About The Opportunities Of An Ageing Society

Prime Minister Abe’s recent visit to the UK was a chance for the two countries to talk about common issues affecting their future. Let’s hope one of the topics they discussed was how to deal with an ageing society. In the 1970s and 1980s the world looked to Japan to learn about lean manufacturing. After the 2007-8 global financial crisis it looked to Japan to see how to deal with the aftermath of a financial crisis. Japan is a...

March 20, 2019
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19Mar

New pension comparison app set to launch

Age Wage, a new defined contribution comparison service, is expected to be up and running in June this year. The fintech company, which will soon enter the Financial Conduct Authority sandbox, will be launching an app which will allow savers to receive a score for their pension, and switch to another provider if they’re not happy with their results. Through an app, savers will be able to see the value of their pot, how it compares to a benchmark,...

March 19, 2019
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19Mar

UK. Government gives green light to CDC pension schemes

The government has confirmed the launch of Collective Defined Contribution pension schemes in a new consultation. CDC schemes, which are already popular in Denmark and the Netherlands, pay out a regular income from a collective fund rather than producing an individual 'pension pot'. Last year, Royal Mail reached a deal with the Communication Workers Union which sought to launch CDC pensions in the UK. The government has today confirmed that it will "introduce CDC provisions slowly", starting with the...

March 19, 2019
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15Mar

UK. Pensioners risk £68,000 shortfall as they underestimate the cost of retirement

Pensioners risk a shortfall of more than £68,000 over the course of their retirement as 33% of Brits expect to survive solely on their state pension, new research from Nationwide Building Society shows Based on today’s pensioner spending habits, those retiring in future could be close to £400 out of pocket each month due to a gap between expectations and reality. This significant miscalculation could prove to be a major setback to tomorrow’s pensioners enjoying their later life – forcing...

March 15, 2019
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14Mar

Scottish public pension fund partners with MSIM on sustainability

Scottish Borders Council Pension Fund has become the first UK local authority pension fund to invest in Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s (MSIM) Global Sustain Strategy. Launched in 2018, the strategy is managed by MSIM’s international equity team and invests in firms that are carbon light, tobacco-free, alcohol-free, and free of fossil fuels. Councillor David Parker, the pension fund’s chair, said: “The Scottish Borders Council Pension Fund believes that a positive approach to ESG issues can positively affect the financial...

March 14, 2019
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14Mar

Ageing Britons More Likely To Be Impoverished And Unwell, Says Report

Millions more people can expect to live their last years in poverty and hardship, with increasing health challenges, a damning independent report has said. An increasing number of people reaching old age is putting pressure on health services, the Centre for Ageing Better, who ran the report, said. But Dr Anna Dixon from the Centre was keen to assert “our current rates of chronic illness, mental health conditions, disability and frailty could be greatly reduced if we tackled the...

March 14, 2019
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13Mar

UK. Consumers need simpler retirement products, says outgoing FSCS boss

Pension products should carry a quality mark from the City regulator so customers know they are buying good value, the outgoing chief executive of a savings safety net has suggested. Mark Neale, who has previously announced his intention to step down after spending nine years as chief executive of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), suggested that pension products could be subject to a quality marking scheme by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FSCS, which is funded by...

March 13, 2019
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