Royal London reaction to Pensions Review

Commenting on the Pensions Review Phase 2, and the launch of a new Pensions Commission, Royal London's Director of Policy Jamie Jenkins comments:

"The Pension Schemes Bill largely sets out the strategic direction for retirement saving over the next five years, and the formation of a new Pensions Commission will allow us to look beyond 2030 and consider how we improve retirement saving further in the decades ahead, considering the balance between State provision and private saving, and the role that savers themselves play in planning for their retirement.

"While now might not be the right time to raise contribution levels, given other financial pressures, we can’t ignore the more daunting prospect of an increasingly large and widely undersaved population of people in retirement. So now is the time to make a plan to remedy this in future.

"The government’s analysis also reveals the stark 48% gender pensions gap in private pension wealth for women and echoes our own insight. Royal London’s Financial Resilience Report found that men have an average of £92,000 in their pension pots, while women have only £39,000, and we know that more than half (54%) of women say they do not feel confident when saving for retirement, compared to 41% of men.

"We need certainty on the long-term direction of travel for private and State pensions and to ensure the system works well for everyone, so the Pensions Commission’s promise to look at the complex reasons underpinning why people are not saving enough and make recommendations to address this are very welcome."