Having taken stock of events and developments in 2011, Capita Hartshead has drawn up its pensions wish list to help the policymakers in 2012.
· ‘Leave tax-free cash alone’ – its one of the biggest incentives to save into a pension
· ‘Make things simpler not more complicated’ – how about a complete moratorium on new legislation for DB schemes? Trustees and employers have enough to deal with already. And …
· … let’s make 2012 the year when we achieve a simple solution to GMP equalisation. And …
· … we’d like statutory confirmation that occupational pension schemes' trusts can include life assurance for employees even if they do not accrue pension benefits in the scheme. It’s an unnecessary complication, and might well have been an unintended consequence of the FA2004.
· Say ‘no’ to Europe (again) and find a way to avoid solvency 2 for pensions
· ‘Talk less, act more on financial education’ – in the short term this will lead to better outcomes for people retiring from DC schemes, in the longer term, to a higher level of financial literacy across the nation
· Do something really radical – find a way to incentivise employers to make more than minimal provision. If you are short of ideas on how to do this, there are plenty of people in the pensions industry who can help.
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