Tuesday August 5th (today)
Roundtable chaired by Bryn, Lord Davies of Brixton. Joined by Tom McPhail, Margaret Snowdon OBE and Arun Muralidhar.
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Last week we had the launch of the Pension Commission. At the Pension Playpen I was chatting with Steve Goddard and the crew before Jon turned up and – filling the space – Steve asked me if I was looking forward to the next 18 months of Commission . I said “no”. Bryn Davies questioned whether I’d lost it with a blog which hardly welcomed the second Pension Commission. The debate had started.
Of Course “PC2” as Andy Young calls it, is led by a Labour Baroness – Jeannie Drake. I jibed that Bryn , a fellow Labour peer, would side with a fellow Labour peer – that was cheap. Nick Pearce is doing good work at the University of Bath, Ian Cheshire is a former chairman of Barclays.
More seriously, my answer to Bryn was that I was not pleased with the launch if what we got was the “La La savings” commission as our pensions minister referred to such things. I was in the Edinburgh Hall when he made this comment. Pension Age reported last week
Bell had previously seemed to rule out the idea of a long-term savings commission as a way of building consensus, suggesting that those who think this is the best approach are “living in la la land” given shifts in the political landscape in Britain.
Today’s FT carries an article by Steven Bush that questions whether we can afford the kind of politics that I and a few others worry will be debated for 18 months.
My view’s (was then and is now) that if the Pension Commission becomes a marketing opportunity for the insurance companies and other commercial savings companies, it is nothing but “La La distraction” from the Pension Schemes Act.
I would regret a distraction from the effort to get people investing over time in favour of sidecars to keep people off benefits.
I not want the Pension Commission to promote saving without a proper examination of what “need” means to house owners, renters, single retirees, those in family – and the importance of culture and religion in looking after older people.
Bryn Davies was clearly not impressed, we had a little conversation after and the result is next week’s Pension PlayPen, a debate about what the Pension should and shouldn’t be.
I have made my feelings clear enough on my blog . there is no need to bore you again!
The debate we have arranged is to discuss my contention that PC1 is a waste of time.
Here is the Terms of Reference laid down by the Government to me they are too vague (though Bryn tells me no more so than those of PC1 – the Turner Commission that reported 20 years ago).
You make up your mind!
Here again are the details of the event this morning;
Tuesday August 5th
Roundtable chaired by Bryn, Lord Davies of Brixton. Joined by Tom McPhail, Margaret Snowdon OBE and Arun Muralidhar.
I’ll be there and if we get a La La solution , I’ll be the devil asking “can we afford it?”
Join the meeting here