Category Archives: DWP

Private markets – a jewel in the crown or fool’s gold?

Posted on September 29, 2021 by henry tapper

A key aim for DC trustees should be to consider how to ‘further improve’ long term future net risk adjusted returns and ‘member outcomes’ rather than just cutting costs. Getting more for members! @GuyOpperman @DWP @TPRgovuk @TheFCA @ThePLSA @bankofengland @henryhtapper … Continue reading →

Posted in age wage, DWP, Fiduciary Management, Guidance, guy opperman | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Maintenance payments are not a benefit, they are a carer’s and a child’s right

Posted on January 27, 2021 by henry tapper

This article’s about the payment of child maintenance, something I did for 20 years. To me it is the very first priority of a paying parent as it is the lifeline for the carer and the child. You can read … Continue reading →

Posted in DWP | Tagged , , , , , , | 9 Comments

A Minister Drinking the Regulator’s Kool-Aid – No Consolation

Posted on December 8, 2020 by henry tapper

An article by Con Keating The  preamble to a recent article in Professional Pensions by the Pensions Minister, Guy Opperman, read: ” In the fourth of a five-part series of articles for PP, pensions minister Guy Opperman sets out how … Continue reading →

Posted in advice gap, de-risking, DWP, guy opperman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Now more than ever , Royal Mail’s CDC scheme looks a game changer

Posted on November 3, 2020 by henry tapper

I was lucky to be among the participants in yesterday’s Westminster Business Forum and hear Jon Millidge and Terry Pullinger talk with pride of the CDC scheme they expect to launch for over 140,000 postal workers. At a time of … Continue reading →

Posted in advice gap, CDC, DWP | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

DB pensions are in a hole, let’s swap the DWP’s spade for a ladder

Posted on October 24, 2020 by henry tapper

    Bowles my liege… It’s a great shame to read Guy Opperman excising Sharon Bowles amendment to the Pensions Act. The Bowles amendment  would give open pension schemes the capacity to be funded as ongoing concerns rather than being … Continue reading →

Posted in dc pensions, de-risking, DWP | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The conversion of the Pension Plowman

Posted on October 10, 2020 by henry tapper

I had a bit of a ding-dong with Guy Opperman earlier in the year when I disagreed with him about getting illiquid investments into our workplace pension “Backing annuities – yes,  backing DB scheme pensions -yes, but shoe-horned into DC … Continue reading →

Posted in actuaries, advice gap, dc pensions, DWP, pensions | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

“Shape up or shape out” – DWP give small DC schemes one year’s notice

Posted on September 13, 2020 by henry tapper

   It is not acceptable for savers to be enrolled in arrangements that do not deliver value in terms of costs, investment returns or secure and resilient governance. Government would expect trustees acting in the best interests of their members … Continue reading →

Posted in advice gap, age wage, DWP, pensions, Pensions Regulator | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Why your pension records – like your medicals – should be yours by right

Posted on August 28, 2020 by henry tapper

This blog sets out for the first time a fundamental right of the retirement saver, a right to see their pension record in a digitally readable format. Continue reading →

Posted in accountants, advice gap, age wage, DWP, pensions | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Changing the way our pensions work

Posted on August 27, 2020 by henry tapper

I expect that those few remaining trustees and members of IGCs and GAAs who are in denial of the value of ESG, will – in the face of the forthcoming Act and the detail within the consultation, step down. Continue reading →

Posted in age wage, DWP, ESG, pensions | Tagged , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Lords say “no” to the “dumping” of open DB pension schemes!

Posted on July 12, 2020 by henry tapper

This blog pays  tribute to someone of whom I knew nothing but a couple of weeks ago but who has made an extraordinary contribution to UK pensions by means of what should be  known as the Bowles Amendment. The Bowles … Continue reading →

Posted in Bankers, CDC, dc pensions, de-risking, DWP, pensions | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments