With the general election around the corner, the political parties are in full campaign mode as they set out their policies in the run-up to polling day.
Relevant to our business, the Conservatives would continue to support the Mansion House reforms announced earlier this year and have said they plan to raise the tax-free allowance on the state pension in what they describe as “Triple Lock Plus”.
They are also pledging to take another 2p off employee National Insurance and to support the self-employed by abolishing the main rate of self-employed National Insurance entirely by the end of the next Parliament.
Labour and Liberal Democrat manifestos both say they would maintain the triple lock on the state pension, with the Liberal Democrats going a step further, recognising difficulties in claiming state pension benefits by pledging to add resources to improve response times to enquiries.
Most parties support action by pension schemes on climate change, with the Green Party most bullish in this area, saying they would require UK pension funds to remove investment in fossil fuel assets by 2030.
It may be that all parties standing in the election need to do some serious communicating about pensions. Research by retirement income specialists My Pension Expert revealed that just under 65 per cent of UK adults aged 40 and above could not properly define the pension triple lock.
The findings showed 39 per cent of adults selected the incorrect definition of the three factors that make up the triple lock, while 26 per cent admitted they did not know.
The triple lock means the state pension will rise by the higher of the rate of inflation, the increase in average earnings or 2.5 per cent.