If you’re old enough to recognise the reference to Tom Robinson’s 1977 gay anthem then you’re grey, bald or using restorer!

Here’s Tom singing about queer bashing on “So it Goes” , complete with Japanese sub-titles (that’s the wonder of Youtube).

Things have moved in the right direction since those dark days and many of us teenagers then are today’s establishment!

Some  of us are of an age to be contemplating or at the point when we are drawing on our pensions or at least thinking about it.

We are the generation who will be the first to get the guarantee of guidance that will be delivered by the Pension Schemes Act 2015 (now under parliamentary scrutiny).

We learned yesterday that this Guidance will be branded by the Treasury and delivered under this brand. The details are in this excellent article in Professional Pensions.

The article tells me what I want to hear. TPAS never were going to deliver Face to Face advice and it’s proper that they provide the telephony for the new brand (just as it’s proper that MAS provide on-line decision trees). I’m happy that Guidance sits within the Treasury and having attended one or two of the FCA workshops over the summer, I’m looking forward to what will be rolled out over the next six months.

The success of auto-enrolment (and NEST) shows that Government led pension initiatives can work and I am considerably less sceptical about the delivery of Guidance than many of my peers.

Why shouldn’t Britain’s greying generations get excited about free guidance on something as important as the financing of the second half of their lives?

So what is this new service to be called then?

The clunky PADA morphed into the  friendly NEST . The Guidance Guarantee needs a similar makeover.

I am sure there is a title on the stocks, but in case there isn’t – how about “GLAD”?

GLAD stands for “EnGage – Learn – And -Do!” or “Greys Learn and Do”

GLAD is snappy and positive and it’s a word that is too little used these days!

If the Treasury have got nothing better on the stocks- they should consider it!

I have inserted some putative marketing concepts and suggest we bring Tom out of retirement to sing “Glad to be Grey”

Our Pension Advice is the best in the world

I don’t believe none of those stories I’m told

Bout’ Commissions to salesmen (advisers they’re not)

And  super high charges that erode my pot

Dodgy inducements

Year after year

I don’t believe that sort of thing…

Happens here…

So sing if you’re glad to be grey

Sing if you’re happy that way- heh!

Sing if you’re glad to be grey

Sing if you’re happy that way.