More than a vote winner

Any new government now is likely to be more concerned with the next election – which many say could be soon – than it will be with implementing policies.

This could strengthen the argument of those in favour of having an independent commission on pensions – a straw poll of 12 people on Twitter found a majority think the case for a commission is stronger after the election.

Richard Harrington has in the past said that this would not be considered. But any pensions minister in the new government might have to look again at a commission if pensions are not to be entirely relegated to the toolbox for winning the grey vote.

Adequacy remains a major issue, while decumulation options are in dire need of improvement.

The fragmentation of the pensions market and resulting confusion and mistrust among savers is not the only reason for low savings rates – the normalisation of consumer debt is likely another big factor – but it is a reason.

I am sometimes told the British suffer from a deep-seated angst about compulsion, preferring to have, and give, choice. But greater choice does not always result in better outcomes.

Any new government should ask itself, for example, if people would really reject a single dashboard; if savers would stage a rebellion if they received standardised workplace pension statements etc. It is time all the talk about simplicity is put into practice.

For many areas of life – notably the question of who governs – choice and individual freedom are of course preferable. But imagine every constituency had different polling cards, a different way to cast the vote and came with pages of risk warnings. Would that increase turnout? Hardly.

The government must lay down clear, simple lines along which savers can move so that, instead of suffering from paralysis due to an overwhelming number of options, they actually do make a choice.

Sandra Wolf is editor at Pensions Expert. You can follow her on Twitter @SandraCWK and the team @pensions_expert.