The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) is calling on the Government to announce a Pensions Bill at the state opening of Parliament tomorrow.
PLSA director of policy and advocacy Nigel Peaple says this should include a timetable for increasing minimum auto-enrolment contributions.
People says: “Given that everyone agrees pensions policy needs reform, and having already confirmed it will conduct an independent review of pensions, the Government should keep up the pace of change by announcing a Pensions Bill in The King’s Speech tomorrow.
“This would enable the Government to quickly progress any recommendations arising from this review and pick up important areas of policy reform already initiated by the previous Government.”
He says this would include necessary legislation to require schemes to provide more support to savers at retirement, to grant TPR wind-up powers required under the proposed value for money framework, and for the creation of the DB Superfunds regime.
Peaple adds: “If the Government is serious about significantly improving the retirement incomes of today’s workers, a Pensions Bill should also set a timeline for gradually increasing minimum automatic enrolment contributions from the current level of 8 per cent of a band of earnings to 12 per cent of total earnings.
“We would also expect the pensions minister to shortly propose secondary legislation to expand the scope of automatic enrolment by introducing saving from the first pound of earnings and lowering the qualifying age to 18 instead of 22.
“The PLSA stands ready to provide expertise to the pensions review to help the Government achieve its ambitions for growth and improving retirement incomes for savers.”