We don’t always get it right. And it’s in our psyche to be
critical of ourselves; disparaging even. But, actually, we’ve not done such a
bad job with pensions.
We have a State system that works, that despite the recent changes, meets the needs of the poorer in society, and gives the rest of us a ‘not too bad result’ for our time in the workplace.
And we have an occupational pension system that is the envy of many. The Italians have had governments fall because of attempted pension reform. The French are in trouble- surely it is only a matter of time before their system collapses with the emphasis on PAYG and such low retirement ages? And the Greeks… Well, the Greeks.
We’ve made mistakes for sure. The day the accountants beat the actuaries at their own game and insisted on present market values. That was, to my mind, the death knell for Defined Benefits. But our Defined Contribution system works well if the employer is willing to put in a decent amount.
And the new Auto-Enrolment legislation is working. Lots more people in pension plans. A greater awareness of pensions. Less stress on the State as a result. I know… it’s only a start, not enough going in, etc, etc. But don’t be so hard on yourself! It’s a success!
Not only that, we have the longest standing Pensions Minister in history- and he actually understands his brief!
I do wish we would be more careful with the headlines we feed to the press (especially to the Express and Mail!) If we can get into the habit of presenting challenges in a more positive way, we may get a more positive slant on the problems we face in pensions.
Since Samuel Pepys had to pay a pension to his predecessor as Clerk of the Navy Board, we’ve done alright. Not great. Not fantastically. But just about alright.
We have a State system that works, that despite the recent changes, meets the needs of the poorer in society, and gives the rest of us a ‘not too bad result’ for our time in the workplace.
And we have an occupational pension system that is the envy of many. The Italians have had governments fall because of attempted pension reform. The French are in trouble- surely it is only a matter of time before their system collapses with the emphasis on PAYG and such low retirement ages? And the Greeks… Well, the Greeks.
We’ve made mistakes for sure. The day the accountants beat the actuaries at their own game and insisted on present market values. That was, to my mind, the death knell for Defined Benefits. But our Defined Contribution system works well if the employer is willing to put in a decent amount.
And the new Auto-Enrolment legislation is working. Lots more people in pension plans. A greater awareness of pensions. Less stress on the State as a result. I know… it’s only a start, not enough going in, etc, etc. But don’t be so hard on yourself! It’s a success!
Not only that, we have the longest standing Pensions Minister in history- and he actually understands his brief!
I do wish we would be more careful with the headlines we feed to the press (especially to the Express and Mail!) If we can get into the habit of presenting challenges in a more positive way, we may get a more positive slant on the problems we face in pensions.
Since Samuel Pepys had to pay a pension to his predecessor as Clerk of the Navy Board, we’ve done alright. Not great. Not fantastically. But just about alright.
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