IFP member firm joins call for new pensions body
An IFP corporate member has thrown its weight behind calls for a new independent Pensions Commission.
The International Longevity Centre – UK said a new body should be created to build cross-party policies on pensions and to prevent retirees from running out of money after they quit work.
The organisation's report, sponsored by IFP corporate member Prudential, stated that retirement planning has become difficult due to constant policy changes.
The think tank made the call for political consensus, which it said, was required to tackle a "perfect storm" for savers.
Researchers stated that many future savers were still unlikely to secure adequate retirement incomes as a consequence of economic and demographic headwinds.
ILC-UK argued that the commission should be given a remit to:
1) define target outcomes for retirement savings and extending working lives.
2) monitor progress against these targets.
3) consult and ultimately decide on whether new policy reforms are needed.
The report stated that a commission should be set up as soon as possible after the General Election.
But in order to allow the current set of reforms to bed-in and to ensure shorter term stability it should not finalise proposals until 2017 at the earliest.
The report also argues that the commission must "carry sufficient weight politically to ensure that its findings and proposals are taken seriously" and recommends it should report to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Prime Minister.
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Ben Franklin, senior research fellow at ILC-UK, said: "A new Pensions Commission is urgently needed in order to look at the problem of retirement income adequacy in a holistic way – taking into account the political and economic realities of our time.
"The core goal of ensuring adequate retirement incomes based on the principle of consensus based policy making, is consistent with the original thrust of the Turner Commission a decade ago, and can be at the heart of a new coherent settlement on pensions policy in the UK."
Even with the Government's planned changes to State Pension age, people will still require sufficient savings to fund up to a third of their adult lives in retirement - over 20 years – the centre said.
It cited figures showing the average length of time spent in retirement has significantly increased over the last 30 years, by more than one third for men and just under one fifth for women.
In future, hopes for an adequate retirement income will hinge on people saving enough into defined contribution schemes, but evidence suggests this is not yet the case, the report's authors said.
Statistics have shown, they said, that on average, employees contributed just 2.9% of their salary to a DC pot by comparison to 5.9% for members of defined benefit schemes.
The difference in the employer contribution was even starker – just over 6% for DC schemes but over 15% for DB schemes.
Projections suggested that unless contributions into DC schemes rise, less than half of median earners will be able secure an adequate retirement income through Auto-Enrolment.
Tim Fassam, head of public affairs at Prudential, said: "Recent changes have expanded the number of people saving and provided a wider range of choices in retirement. While these are important improvements, most people are still not saving enough to provide the retirement they desire.
"Pension decisions are long-term, so stability and predictability are important in encouraging people to save more. At Prudential we believe the best way to achieve this is through consensus with savers, policymakers and industry working together."