Guy Opperman, the longest-serving pensions minister, has resigned from his position after a little more than 5 years.
The news comes as media outlets report that Prime Minister Boris Johnson is about to resign.
Over 50 members of government have resigned as of Opperman’s resignation. On Twitter Opperman said: “It has been an honour, and a great responsibility, to serve as a minister, but we need leadership change, and I have resigned. I will continue to work for my constituents in Hexham from the backbenches.”
In another tweet he added: “It should not take the resignation of 50 colleagues, but sadly the PM has left us no choice. He needs to resign.”
In his resignation letter to the Prime Minister posted on Twitter Opperman said: “My view is that it is important to work as a team and deliver on the priorities that matter most to my constituents Northumberland. As a Minister, I accept and understand the requirement of collective ministerial agreement upon which our system relies. The record of this government, as we have faced the challenges of the Covid pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the consequential impact on the cost of living and inflation is something I am immensely proud to have been a part of. I have backed you throughout these challenges.”
Opperman added: “Sadly, recent events have shown clearly that Government simply cannot function with you in charge. In good faith, and with regret, for the good of the country, I must ask you to stand down. No one individual, however successful in the past, is bigger than the party, or this great country.”
The news of Opperman’s resignation has spurred a reaction from the pensions sector.
Aegon head of pensions Kate Smith says: “The Pensions Minister’s resignation leaves pensions in turmoil. He was personally leading a number of initiatives to improve pensions engagement including the pension dashboard and the pension engagement season. We had been expecting the government response to the DWP pension dashboard consultation with final regulations any day and everything hangs off this, including the timetable for schemes to connect to dashboards. Every day delayed puts the smooth implementation of the dashboard in jeopardy. Initiatives to improve member engagement with their pensions were gathering momentum. These need to continue at pace to help improve understanding of pensions.
“Crucially, the Minister’s resignation could also impact the next steps for auto-enrolment, including lowering the minimum age from 22 to 18 and basing minimum contributions from the first pound, as well as finding solutions for the self-employed. Only this week, the Pensions Minister recommitted to implementing these in the mid-2020s and suggested increasing the minimum contributions from 8 per cent to 12 per cent over time. All of this could now be in jeopardy.”
Quilter head of retirement policy Jon Greer says: “The government continues to haemorrhage high profile ministers and it is the turn of Guy Opperman today who has only just overtaken Sir Steve Webb as the longest-serving pensions minister since the post was first created in 1998.
“This marks the end of a fairly long period of stability in the post, which has typically been a revolving door with many ministers using it as a springboard to jobs in the Treasury. Pensions by their very nature are long-term and pension policy benefits from long-standing ministers. Setting retirement policy and ensuring we have a well-functioning state pension system is a long-term project but it is unlikely we’ll see the kind of stability Opperman brought for some time now. In just 24 years there have been 14 ministers with only Sir Steve Webb staying for longer than two years.
“During his time in the post, Opperman has been an influential figure in driving a number of considerable projects and policies such as the upcoming pensions dashboard, which will allow users to see all their pension policies in one place.
“Opperman was quick to grasp the issues in pension landscape but progress was often hampered by the political backdrop such as Brexit, Tory infighting and the pandemic.
“There still needs to be huge swathes of change within pensions but this needs to be led not only be the DWP but also the Treasury. One such area is Automatic Enrolment, where progress has been hindered in part by the Treasury, which often kicked the can down the road or stifled evolution due to cost. This may be one area of regret for the outgoing minister.
“Opperman has been keen to drive customer engagement and help people understand their pension and get value for money. He has been a leading force in pushing for ESG in pensions and investments and developing the available types of pensions such as Collective Defined Contribution (CDC). It is, without doubt, sad to see him go.”
Pensions Management Institute director of policy and external affairs Tim Middleton says: “Guy Opperman recently became the longest-serving Pensions Minister ever, and the industry had become accustomed to a period of stability. His style was frequently challenging, but nobody could question his determination to achieve significant reforms within the workplace pensions sector. The most significant aspect of his legacy will no doubt be the establishment of the pensions dashboard, and it is unfortunate that he has been unable to follow this through to its conclusion.
“The pensions industry – and the country as a whole – must now prepare itself for a period of instability before normality is to be restored and it is likely to be some time before a new Minister is appointed. However, Mr Opperman’s successor will inherit a pensions sector that has benefited from years of prudent stewardship marked by reform and development. We extend our best wishes to Mr Opperman for whatever the future holds for him.”
