Monthly Archives: April 2022

The balls of Old Bailey

Posted on April 30, 2022 by henry tapper

NEW: Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, is expected to appear before an MP inquiry into the British Steel #pension mis-selling scandal. Bailey was chief of the FCA when the scandal involving thousands of steelworkers first erupted in 2017. #BSPS … Continue reading →

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Financial education? It needs more conviction than most of us can muster!

Posted on April 30, 2022 by henry tapper

People in the pensions industry are fond of using the phrase “financial education” as if they know the answer and those who aren’t doing what they want to do are financially illiterate.  This is hugely arrogant and largely wrong. People … Continue reading →

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How would you like to get paid without ever working again?

Posted on April 30, 2022 by henry tapper

What’s the point of ‘retail CDC’? You have to start by defining what problems you’re trying to solve. Do you mainly want to pool longevity risk or do you want to share real-return risks? If latter, but not between generations, … Continue reading →

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Pension transfer times are getting longer , how can this (pension) be?

Posted on April 29, 2022 by henry tapper

I am a fan of Pension Bee. I visited their new offices in Southwark yesterday, I was shown into the post room, apparently they get a special delivery every day, so much mail needs to be scanned from the pension … Continue reading →

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Opperman links launch of 2017 AE reforms to wash-up of small pots

Posted on April 29, 2022 by henry tapper

Guy Opperman clearly enjoys twitter, he has mastered the production of a twitter thread (a series of micro-blogs that can develop an argument without fear of interruption). Here is the latest, which while being overly triumphal, contains some strong messages … Continue reading →

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Has Stephen Timms just thought the unthinkable?

Posted on April 29, 2022 by henry tapper

  I’ve had the pleasure of listening to Stephen Timms talk twice in two days and not only does he deliver what he has to say with dignity and feeling, what he says has a humanity about it that reminds … Continue reading →

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Is Nikhil Rathi saying “a pension is better than a pot?”

Posted on April 28, 2022 by henry tapper

FCA chief admits to ‘issue’ with supervision in steelworker #pension mis-selling scandal pic.twitter.com/QUkf1v3hlK — Josephine Cumbo (@JosephineCumbo) April 28, 2022 I love retro “cut and paste”, especially when it is from one of our most digitally advanced journalists. Jo is … Continue reading →

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For those who should be alive and loving, alive and loved.

Posted on April 28, 2022 by henry tapper

    One great sadness of the pandemic is the loss of life of thousands of elderly people discharged from hospitals into care homes where they both died and spread the pandemic to others who died. This was known to … Continue reading →

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The FCA’s special powers exercised five years late

Posted on April 27, 2022 by henry tapper

This blog argues that the FCA’s problems in 2022 are as a direct consequence of not listening to what was going on in 2017. The lack of decisive leadership over transfers has led to a need for a £71m redress … Continue reading →

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Who owns the Bristol Water pension surplus? Steelworkers take note!

Posted on April 26, 2022 by henry tapper

I hear that the very well-informed MP, Stephen Timms, who chairs the Work and Pensions Select Committee, is on to Bristol Water’s claim on the £12.1m surplus that is estimated to be left over after the scheme is bought out … Continue reading →

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