All Steve Webb articles – Page 9
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News
Ownership or nudge? How to make auto-escalation work
The pensions industry and government must instil a sense of “personal ownership” over pensions in currently underprepared members if auto-enrolment is to achieve its aims, pensions minister Richard Harrington has said.
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NewsChancellor proposes ban on cold calling, refrains from pensions tax overhaul
In his first and last Autumn Statement, Chancellor Philip Hammond swapped the timing of the Budget and the Statement but had comparatively little to say about pensions for now; one of the larger measures – a consultation into pensions fraud – was welcomed by the industry.
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News
Trustees not convinced by indexation change arguments
Trustees are overwhelmingly in favour of restructuring scheme benefit structures in response to the defined benefit crisis, a recent survey has suggested, but stop short of supporting a statutory override on increases of accrued benefits.
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News
Industry divided over CPIH
The Office for National Statistics has recently said it will make the consumer price index including owner-occupiers’ housing costs its preferred measure for gauging inflation next year, so should the government follow suit for pension indexation and revaluation?
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Opinion
Autumn (Statement) mood
From the blog: More than a month to go until the Autumn Statement, and the first shots are already being fired.
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Opinion
The savings crisis: Top-up v save more tomorrow
Analysis: The debate about tax relief on pension contributions and incentives for saving has kept industry and policymakers entertained (or unamused) for five or six years now.
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News
Nest drawdown proposals: Competitors fear disruption
The dust has settled on government's call for evidence on the expansion of Nest into the drawdown market, but it seems the war of words between industry professionals is far from over.
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Opinion
Should Nest expand into decumulation?
In July 2016, the Department for Work and Pensions launched a three-month consultation on the future of the Nest.
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News
CPI and RPI gap at largest for five years as schemes eye law change
The retail price index and consumer price index were the farthest apart they have been for five years in last month’s inflation figures, prompting debate that legislation could level the playing field for schemes using RPI for benefit increases.
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NewsSelect committees: Philip Green has ‘moral duty’ to help fix BHS pension deficit
A joint report published by the Work and Pensions Committee and the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee found negligence caused BHS’s pensions deficit, and opened the possibility of increasing the Pensions Regulator’s powers.
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NewsWebb: New face at DWP will not loosen Treasury's grip on pensions tax
Philip Hammond’s appointment as chancellor of the exchequer is unlikely to see the Department for Work and Pensions regain control of pensions reform, according to former pensions minister Steve Webb.
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OpinionPlaying the waiting game
Editorial: As the reality of the leave vote is sinking in, the British stiff upper lip is invoked incessantly by the pensions industry in an attempt to convince themselves and each other that things can’t be as bad as they are.
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Opinion
How to make the dashboard work
Barely a week seems to go by without a new report on pensions dashboards, but what are the implications for pension schemes of the chancellor’s commitment to have a dashboard in place by 2019?
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News
Field’s proposal for scheme deficits bill raises pension cut fears
Former pensions minister Steve Webb has warned that a new bill proposed by Work and Pensions Committee chair Frank Field to deal with DB deficits – including by introducing flexible benefits – is a “worrying” development that could undermine people’s confidence in the pension system.
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News
Select committee flags Lisa as AE opt-out concern
A recent report from the Work and Pensions Committee has raised concern that the Lifetime Isa could lure people out of pensions, but the industry is divided over whether Lisas are a threat or potential boon for auto-enrolment.
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OpinionWhat does Iain Duncan Smith's resignation mean for pensions?
There was a big upset in Westminster over the weekend as former secretary of state for work and pensions Iain Duncan Smith resigned in protest over the chancellor’s latest round of benefit cuts.
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OpinionBeware of chancellors bearing gifts
In Greek mythology, the city of Troy was put under siege for ten fruitless years before the Greeks had the brainwave of pretending to be defeated and sailing off, leaving behind just a large wooden horse...
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NewsLifetime Isa blurs lines between long and short-term saving
Budget 2016: The dreaded tax change on pension saving has been narrowly avoided in the chancellor’s Budget 2016, but the announcement of a Lifetime Isa could be a step towards a pensions Isa, industry comments suggest.
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News
PLSA launches DB taskforce as deficits spiral
PLSA Investment Conference 2016: While the combined deficit in the PPF 7800 index has reached £322.8bn, the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association said it has launched a taskforce to “tackle the problems faced by defined benefit pension schemes”.
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NewsNHS cash for pensions offer could open loophole
An NHS trust has come under scrutiny for offering nurses cash to opt out of the pension scheme, which experts have said could lead to other employers copying the move.