We recognise the need to democratise the ability to save and a number of the Resolution Foundation’s key findings align with our own research published on Stocks & Shares ISAs recently.
“We agree that more attention must be paid to those who do not benefit from current schemes, rather than the small minority of UK consumers that currently use their ISA allowances effectively. We also support the recommendations to expand and continue the Help to Save initiative to improve UK financial resilience and rebalance household finances, particularly as recent statistics show many households rely on credit to make ends meet.
“Our research with Oxera late last year showed that consumers in the highest socioeconomic group (AB) are significantly (17%) more likely to invest in Stocks and Shares ISAs than consumers in the lowest socioeconomic group (DE). It also confirmed that individuals are significantly more likely to invest if they are male, live in the South East (particularly London), and if they believe that ‘people like them’ save into S&S ISAs.
“This narrative is reflected in the “ISA ISA baby” report, which found 41 per cent of the £1.3 billion of foregone tax revenue due to ISA allowances goes to the richest tenth of households. To enable households across the country to grow and improve their wealth, these disparities need to be addressed.
“There is a clear need to encourage and facilitate saving in lower to middle income households, and careful consideration should be given to the policy proposals made in the report. Our door is always open to facilitate dialogue between industry, policymakers and key expert stakeholders like The Resolution Foundation to improve financial outcomes for a broad cross-section of society. We look forward to discussing the proposals in the “ISA ISA Baby” report further.”
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