It must be the last week in August to be a story. We have been consulting about small pots as long as we’ve had workplace pensions and probably longer.

There have been no ends of people who have devoted themselves to this problem but still we have no answer to how we do it. The answer to what was one of the determinations of the Pension Schemes Act was that we would have a solution to the small pot problem. Now it seems that another year has gone by and nothing has been done.

There are winners, the Government levies a (you guessed it) levy on every small pot which is a fixed cost no matter how big the pot.The cost of small pots falls on pension schemes and inevitably are passed on to members,

We have been given a time line (thanks Sackers) but it rivals the pension dashboard for its delays in delivery.

Sackers wind up its paper a year ago; it points out that a Government imposed solution by 2030 will be hard.

For small pot consolidation to go live from 2030 will require a lot of work over a relatively short period. Trustees and employers should ready themselves by building on their dashboards preparations (in terms of data cleansing and matching) and keeping on top of the new legislation and guidance as it appears.

There is a problem here. But it is a problem that is being sorted for the Pensions Dashboard and those who do that work can also help consolidate small pots

Though the problem is the saver’s, the solutions have been laid out and agreed. There was general agreement at a meeting I attended earlier this year that it is time to press the “go” button. This does not wait till 2030 and Government “go live”.

Here is the latest proposal (more than a year old but now about to be consulted on again)

I will comment separately on what was proposed last year. Sam Seaton and others have been working on solutions that can work and bring some consolidation before 2030;  because 2030 is a long way away and hopefully some years after the launching of the pension dashboard.

The private sector should be encouraged to consolidate small pots as the 2025 framework suggested; they should  get on with it without further consultation.