All Podcasts articles – Page 2
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PodcastsPodcast: Trustees struggling to guide members on inflation benefits
Podcast: A report from XPS Pensions suggests that members could reap £10,000 additional benefits by delaying retirement because of the way increases and inflation are calculated, but trustees are struggling to help them because of the “red tape” around advice. LCP partner Laura Amin is joined by Hymans Robertson partner Patrick Bloomfield to discuss benefits’ inflation calculation and advice, concerns about defined benefit funding, and the women’s state pension age investigation.
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PodcastsPodcast: Schemes struggle to educate members amid cost of living crisis
Podcast: Members should be able to consider dipping into their pensions early to combat the cost of living crisis, but schemes may struggle to educate them about the best means of doing so without giving them advice. Society of Pensions Professionals president Steve Hitchiner is joined by AgeWage chief executive Henry Tapper, founder of the Pension Playpen, to discuss recession fears, consumer protection for dashboards, and expanding long-term asset funds.
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PodcastsPodcast: Ball in TPR’s court as DB funding code consultation launches
Podcast: The consultation into the defined benefit funding code by the Department for Work and Pensions hints at a prescriptive regime to come, but the Pensions Regulator must improve on its “rubbish” code of practice draft, according to Zedra client director Richard Butcher. He and Hymans Robertson partner Laura McLaren discuss the next steps, stronger nudge concerns, and assess the health of pensions post-Maxwell.
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PodcastsPodcast: Providers delaying transfers are failing their customers
Podcast: The Department for Work and Pensions has been clear about the intent of regulations governing transfers, and providers continuing to delay them are doing their members a disservice, argues PensionBee founder Romi Savova. She is joined by Penfold co-founder Pete Hykin to discuss the ongoing transfer fight, the fallout from pensions minister Guy Opperman’s resignation that wasn’t, and employers misunderstanding auto-enrolment.
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PodcastsPodcast: Schemes will have a tough job weighing up discretionary increases
Podcast: A difficult balance must be struck where schemes are considering discretionary increases: alleviating the cost of living crisis for some members will have to be weighed against the needs of the current workforce. Aon partner Lynda Whitney is joined by Tim Middleton, director of policy and external affairs at the Pensions Management Institute, to discuss this dilemma, as well as the progress of the McCloud remedy and schemes’ dashboard readiness.
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PodcastsPodcast: LGPS faces affordability, engagement and policy challenges
Podcast: The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association’s 2022 local authority conference unearthed the challenges facing the Local Government Pension Scheme and its employer members, including affordability, engagement and policy reforms. Recorded from the conference floor, Pensions Expert was joined by PLSA’s head of defined benefit, LGPS and investment Tiffany Tsang and West Midlands Pension Fund’s director of pensions Rachel Brothwood to discuss new research into the LGPS and what can be done to help employers.
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PodcastsPodcast: Partial AE reform should be prioritised before long-term fix
Podcast: The absence of auto-enrolment reform from the Queen’s speech means the government will be hard-pressed to meet its middle-of-the-decade deadline to achieve it. The priority should be getting the most important parts done as quickly as possible, and introducing the rest of the 2017 reform proposals enacted longer-term. Sackers partner Helen Ball and Mark Ormston, chair of the Industry Policy Committee at the Pensions Administration Standards Association, discuss auto-enrolment, online safety and the proposed value for money framework.
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PodcastsPodcast: Uncertainty around inflation leads to ‘casino pensions’
Podcast: High levels of volatility around inflation will force trustees to “take a bet” on the future, as it is very difficult — absent a crystal ball — to predict inflationary pressure and its impact on scheme liabilities, says Pension Playpen chief executive Steve Goddard. He is joined by Cardano managing director Emily Goodridge to discuss inflation, technology in pensions, and the future of environmental, social and governance disclosure.
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PodcastsPodcast: ‘Pot follows member’ legislation needed to solve small pots problem
Podcast: Industry consensus is needed to support a ‘pot follows member’ solution to the small pots problem, with previous attempts to solve it having failed, says Henry Tapper, executive chair of AgeWage. He is joined by Tom McPhail, director of public affairs at the Lang Cat, to discuss small pots, commercial consolidators, and more McCloud woe for the Local Government Pension Scheme.
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PodcastsPodcast: Natural capital can improve scheme returns but concerns remain
Podcast: Natural capital can improve scheme returns but trustees should not forget to consider their fiduciary duties of being able to pay pensions in the future and have a defensive investment strategy, argue Alina Donets, portfolio manager at Lombard Odier Investment Managers, and Stuart O’Brien, partner at Sackers.
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PodcastsPodcast: Spring Statement - Missed opportunity to support savers
Podcast: A light Spring Statement on pension topics meant that important issues such as financial education and support for institutional investors are still missing from the government’s agenda, argued Callum Stewart, head of defined contribution investment at Hymans Robertson, and Charlotte O’Leary, chief executive and executive director at Pensions for Purpose.
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PodcastsPodcast: Is this really the right time for auto-enrolment expansion?
Podcast: Expanding auto-enrolment is a great idea in theory, but with sky-high inflation, a cost of living crisis and the potential for a global recession to exacerbate it, is now the right time to pursue it? LCP partner Mary Spencer and Cartwright’s director of investment consulting Sam Roberts debate the merits, discuss pension schemes’ reaction to war in Ukraine, and explore the industry’s readiness for long-term inflation.
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PodcastsPodcast: Universal charges could harm master trust competition
Podcast: The intent behind universal charges on default funds is sound, but the method — such as the introduction of flat fees — risks harming the master trust sector and restricting access to pensions, according to The People’s Pension’s director of policy Phil Brown. He his joined by his colleague, head of pensions policy Tim Gosling, to discuss charge structures, decumulation solutions, and baffling pensions jargon.
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PodcastsPodcast: Government must set a timeline for auto-enrolment expansion
Podcast: Auto-enrolment could bring significant benefits to the young, the low-paid and women, and the government must commit to a date to expanding coverage, according to Now Pensions’ head of PR and campaigns, Samantha Gould. She is joined by Linklaters pensions partner John Sheppard to discuss AE, pensions dashboards, and illiquid investments by defined contribution schemes.
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NewsPodcast: TPR tells trustees to weigh up diversity when making decisions
On the go: Trustees should think about the diversity of their scheme’s membership, and consider whether they are “inherently disadvantaging” some members with their decisions, according to David Fairs, the Pensions Regulator’s executive director for regulatory policy, analysis and advice.
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PodcastsPodcast: Top tips for success at the PIPAs
Podcast: As the Pension and Investment Provider Awards 2022 have opened for submissions, Barnett Waddingham’s Danielle Markham and Teneo’s Simon Kew — two of this year’s judges — give some tips on what applicants can do to maximise their chances of winning. LCP’s Stephen Budge, the architect of an award-winning entry last year, explains his strategy in creating a submission that allowed the consultancy to achieve gold.
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PodcastsPodcast: DC focus must ‘fundamentally shift’ from costs to value in 2022
Podcast: The focus on defined contribution scheme offerings must “fundamentally shift” from costs to value for money in 2022 if better outcomes are to be achieved. Darren Philp, director of policy and communication at Smart Pension, and Mike Ambery, partner at Hymans Robertson, discuss the DC outlook, expanding auto-enrolment, and reforming Solvency II.
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PodcastsPodcast: Schemes need to constantly engage with managers to achieve net zero
Podcast: The time when schemes would award mandates and walk away has come to an end, since asset owners now need to have a fairly dynamic relationship with managers to make sure achieving net zero targets is possible, argues Thomas Höhne-Sparborth, head of sustainability research at Lombard Odier Investment Managers. He is joined by Marion Maloney, head of responsible investment and governance at the Environment Agency Pension Fund, to discuss how schemes can put in place and achieve their targets for portfolio decarbonisation.
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PodcastsPodcast: Solving the UK’s ‘underpensioned’ problem
Podcast: A significant proportion of the UK’s working population is struggling to save for retirement, and the Covid-19 pandemic has only worsened the situation. In this podcast, Now Pensions’ head of PR and campaigns Samantha Gould and the Pensions Policy Institute’s senior policy researcher Lauren Wilkinson talk us through the findings of a recent research report into the UK’s ‘underpensioned’ problem, and the policy initiatives that could help bridge the gaps.
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PodcastsPodcast: Fiduciary trumps politics if divesting from ‘illegal Israeli settlements’
Podcast: Local Government Pension Schemes looking to divest from Israel should do so on grounds of sustainability and fiduciary responsibility, not because of politics and personal morality, says Richard Butcher, managing director of PTL. He is joined by Ian Neale, Aries Insight co-founder, to discuss divestment, defined benefit funding and ageing populations.








