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Steve Webb
NEST Restrictions 13/14
The National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) was established to provide all employers with a pension scheme that will enable them to meet their obligations under Auto-Enrolment. This can be used by any organisation, either in isolation or alongside an employer’s existing scheme. Two of the statutory constraints on NEST are the annual contributions limit and [...]
The Single-Tier Pension
On 17 March 2012, the Chancellor, George Osborne, announced on the Andrew Marr show on the BBC that the Single-Tier pension would be brought forward by one year to 2016 rather than 2017. On 19 March 2013, a Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) press release confirmed speculation that the Single-Tier Pension will be introduced [...]
Auto-Enrolment Thresholds Announced for 2013/14
On 06 September 2012, Pensions Minister Steve Webb announced the Consultation for the 2013/14 revision, suggesting that the Earnings Trigger and the Lower and Upper limits of the Qualifying Earnings Bands remain respectively aligned with the PAYE Threshold, the Lower Earnings Limit (LEL) and the Upper Earnings Limit (UEL). At time of the Consultation, the [...]
DWP Pensions Survey 2012
The Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) have published their Attitudes to Pensions: The 2012 Survey. This is the third such survey, the previous two having been conducted in 2006 and 2009. The report is an in-depth look at attitudes towards pensions and saving for retirement and is based on a sample of nearly 2,000 [...]
Wealth Tax – Nick Clegg
The current Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the Liberal Democrats has, again, stated that he believes in a ‘Wealth Tax’ in addition to HMRC’s tax avoidance strategy via the Affluence Unit. Indeed, he has suggested that his party’s support in the Coalition for the spending review in 2015/16 will be dependent on its introduction, [...]
Flat Rate State Pension Reforms
Last week, it was reported that David Cameron, Prime Minister, has personally intervened in the reform of the State pension system, which would see a flat-rate system adopted. He was reportedly said to be concerned that millions, many of whom are core Conservative voters, would not benefit from the reforms or, indeed, would be worse [...]
Workplace Pensions – In or Out?
The DWP’s current advertisements talk about Workplace Pensions, with ‘well-known bosses’ raising the awareness of Auto-Enrolment. If individuals say ‘I’m In’, they are, effectively, getting a pay increase say the adverts. The DWP expects two-thirds of individuals to say ‘I’m In’ by either remaining Auto-Enrolled, Opting In or Joining a pension scheme. Therefore, about one [...]
Autumn Statement 2012, RTI Pilot Update, Week 53 Payments (Again), HMRC Compliance Check Factsheets, Think Tank’s Report on Tax ‘Let-Offs’ for Pensioners, Employment Law Reforms
A September 2012 report from Scottish Widows highlights that saving for retirement is still low, with 46% not saving enough and 22% not saving anything. This is against a backdrop of increasing pension expectations. This report seems timely, as the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) embarks on more advertising to increase awareness of Auto-Enrolment. [...]
Auto-Enrolment Thresholds 2013/14
The Pensions Act 2008 requires the annual review of the Auto-Enrolment thresholds. These are, currently, set in The Automatic Enrolment (Earnings Trigger and Qualifying Earnings Band) Order 2012. In a written statement on 06 September, Pensions Minister Steve Webb announced the publication of the latest Government consultation on the review and revisions of the Earnings [...]
State Pensions Reform – The Flat Rate Pension
The Department for Work and Pensions have revealed that the value of the State Pension paid to pensioners could vary by more than £200.00 per week as a result of the current pension system. This system provides for two entitlements and calculation methods – the Basic and the Additional (SERPS / S2P etc). Approximately 130,000 [...]
Auto-Enrolment Earnings Trigger and Bands in Legislation
Parliament has approved, and the Pensions Minister Steve Webb has signed, the necessary Order which makes the required changes to the Pensions Act 2008, confirming the Earnings Trigger and the Qualifying Earnings Bands. This Order came into force on 15 June 2012 and will applies to the first year of auto-enrolment. Section 14 of the [...]
Auto-Enrolment and European Employees
In February 2012, Steve Webb announced a consultation which looked at the unintended burden of having to Auto-Enrol some dual-status employees. A ‘qualifying employee’ under a 2003 European Union Directive was never intended to be regarded as a jobholder under the Pensions Act 2008. This may have led some employers having to consider these employees [...]
Revised Implementation Proposals for Workplace Pensions Reform
It seems as though we are always writing about the amendment and revision of the implementation timetable for auto-enrolment! On 25 January 2012, Steve Webb, Pensions Minister, announced the publication of a revised timetable for auto-enrolment in the light of his previous announcement in November 2011. This said that the staging dates for small employers [...]
Workplace Pensions and European Employees
Pensions Minister Steve Webb announced a DWP consultation on 20 February 2012 which seeks to address an unnecessary auto-enrolment administration burden that may have risen unintentionally for dual-status employees. The Pensions Act 2008 imposes an obligation on employers to auto-enrol a ‘jobholder’ who works or ordinarily works in the UK under their contract. A 2003 [...]
State Pension Reform
In the 2011 Budget, the Government expressed the view that the State Pension system is too complex, making it difficult for working-age individuals to determine what they might receive from the State, in particular from the State Second Pension. Subsequently, in April 2011, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) published a consultation document presenting [...]
Auto-enrolment Delay
Pensions Minister Steve Webb has confirmed that the Government is delaying pensions auto-enrolment for companies with 49 employees, or less. The original staging date, as outlined in the Employers’ Duties (Implementation) Regulations 2010, was to commence in April 2014, with all employers eventually being live in the scheme from 01 September 2016. However, the April [...]
