All Opinion articles – Page 35

  • Charles McCready
    Opinion

    Guidance will have to replace advice for low earners

    2018-07-20T00:00:00Z

    Independent financial advice is simply not an option for many lower earners striving for a comfortable retirement, so key changes are needed to upgrade the quality of guidance, says Charles McCready of the Tax Incentivised Savings Association.

  • Opinion

    How would a lack of government support affect dashboard progress?

    2018-07-17T00:00:00Z

    Analysis: Reactions to speculation that the secretary of state for work and pensions wants to scrap the pensions dashboard project have been unsurprisingly negative.

  • Paul McGlone
    Opinion

    IDWG cost disclosures are only the beginning

    2018-07-17T00:00:00Z

    The code submitted by Chris Sier’s working group on cost disclosure should make a material and positive difference to the industry, writes the Society of Pension Professionals’ president Paul McGlone, but schemes have an obligation to make use of this new information.

  • Joe Dabrowski
    Opinion

    Increasing TPR powers vital to protect DB schemes

    2018-07-17T00:00:00Z

    From the blog: The white paper on protecting defined benefit schemes will go under the spotlight on Wednesday with both the Pensions Regulator and pensions minister giving oral evidence to the Work and Pensions Committee as part of its inquiry.

  • Lorraine Harper
    Opinion

    What the DWP’s new DB funding code could mean for trustees

    2018-07-16T00:00:00Z

    The Pensions Management Institute’s Lorraine Harper discusses the revised regime for scheme funding set out in the Department for Work and Pensions’ white paper on defined benefit pension schemes, published earlier this year.

  • Opinion

    Review: Look Where You’re Going – The Life of Alan Pickering

    2018-07-13T00:00:00Z

    Perhaps a professional trustee is an unlikely candidate for a published biography. But Paddy Briggs’ 'Look Where You’re Going', provides a fascinating insight into the remarkable life of Alan Pickering CBE.

  • Opinion

    Should I stay or should I go?

    2018-07-12T00:00:00Z

    Editorial: Moving away from the security of a guaranteed defined benefit fund is a big decision to make. For many, it may be the wrong decision.

  • David Davison
    Opinion

    LGPS shared services: Loss of control or efficiency booster?

    2018-07-10T00:00:00Z

    We have already witnessed some level of Local Government Pension Scheme shared services in investment and procurement, and it seems logical to extend this. But how can funds address issues related to valuations and contributions? David Davison at Spence & Partners discusses.

  • Opinion

    How are target date funds innovating?

    2018-07-10T00:00:00Z

    Experts have always found it impossible to analyse one without making comparisons with the other. As with footballing greats Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, no conversation about the target date fund has ever taken place without mentioning its competitor, the lifestyle fund.

  • Lesley Carline
    Opinion

    Boost innovation and understanding

    2018-07-09T00:00:00Z

    There needs to be a shift in public policy to create a savings culture and boost understanding, argues Lesley Carline, vice-president of the Pensions Management Institute.

  • Jon Parker
    Opinion

    What have we learnt from the FCA’s Retirement Outcomes Review?

    2018-07-09T00:00:00Z

    The Financial Conduct Authority’s final findings from its Retirement Outcomes Review offer a fascinating early glimpse into the behaviours of consumers after the introduction of pension freedoms, says Redington’s Jon Parker. 

  • Nick Chadwick and Erik Pickett
    Opinion

    What can be done to address ‘survival pessimism’ in pensions?

    2018-07-02T00:00:00Z

    Club Vita’s Nick Chadwick and Erik Pickett discuss the role of the pensions industry and government in communicating the uncertainty in future lifespans and designing products that help people manage this risk.

  • Stewart Bevan
    Opinion

    Making data count – how to use the IDWG cost code

    2018-07-02T00:00:00Z

    From the blog: Following nine months of detailed work by the members of the Financial Conduct Authority’s Institutional Disclosure Working Group, new cost data templates will, for the first time, provide an industry-agreed, consistent approach to collecting this important information.

  • Paul McGlone
    Opinion

    Small schemes should not pin hopes on consolidators

    2018-07-02T00:00:00Z

    Consolidators looking to profit from pensions look to have government support, says the Society of Pension Professionals’ Paul McGlone, but those schemes in most desperate need of access to scale are unlikely to make attractive business.

  • Peter Murphy
    Opinion

    Schemes must be prepared for an interventionist regulator

    2018-07-02T00:00:00Z

    Defined benefit trustees and employers should both expect to see more of the Pensions Regulator in the coming years, says Sackers’ Peter Murphy, as its new approach and suite of powers look set to target scheme funding and corporate transactions.

  • Opinion

    Sidecars suit self-employed

    2018-06-29T00:00:00Z

    Editorial: Self-employment is more common than ever, and the distinct lack of any concrete solution to get these people saving for retirement is becoming increasingly worrying.

  • Girish Menezes
    Opinion

    To transition or not to transition, that is the question

    2018-06-28T00:00:00Z

    Premier Pensions’ Girish Menezes explains what trustees should take into account when it comes to transitioning to a new administration provider.

  • Danielle Lawson
    Opinion

    The day that climate became mainstream

    2018-06-25T00:00:00Z

    From the blog: Climate campaigners across the country spluttered into their morning cups of fair trade coffee last Tuesday as the Department for Work and Pensions and Financial Conduct Authority published their final responses to the Law Commission’s 2017 report on pensions and social investing.

  • Caroline Kurup
    Opinion

    Are consolidation vehicles the future for DB schemes?

    2018-06-25T00:00:00Z

    Companies offering a cheaper alternative to buyout have unions and others concerned about letting defined benefit employers off the hook via regulatory arbitrage, writes CMS’s Caroline Kurup, but consolidators remain attractive where insurance remains the end point for scheme liabilities.

  • Edward Levy
    Opinion

    Trustee negotiation need not always result in a winner and a loser

    2018-06-19T00:00:00Z

    Edward Levy at Law Debenture Pension Trustees explains how to ensure effective trustee negotiation.