MSE News: Millions face cut in final salary pensions

dunstonh

Without Gordon Brown, the pain would have been far worse. We will get a taster of the pain as the ConDems inflict cuts on the poor whilst lining the pockets of the rich.

GB made the right choices after the event but he made the wrong choices before it happened.

leveller2911

Gorgeous_George wrote: »

Welcome to the world of the Tories.

GG

Nothing to do with party politics...............

The current Government IMO are cutting too much too fast,I understand that the markets need confidence in the countries ability to pay off debt but the cuts will cripple many......


Would also mention Nu-Labour didn't have a real plan and still don't......They were/are a joke ..........

Like others have said this debacle may have started in the US but no one here was forced to rack up debt and live a Chav lifestyle......Saphire was right when they said some of us didn't join the ship bound for the deep but we are being taken down with it anyway............Being hardworking,careful, debt free and living within your means is poor beer really ..........We should have all racked up debt,maxed out on CC and then go bust and start again in 6 yrs time........At least we would have something nice to remember...........

Its a !!!!!! sandwich and I don't see why I should take a bite when I didn't choose the filling..............;)

Old_Slaphead

Posted by Gorgeous George
Without Gordon Brown, the pain would have been far worse. We will get a taster of the pain as the ConDems inflict cuts on the poor whilst lining the pockets of the rich.

Presumably if the same thing happened again, Cameron would also spend £100million+ on 'advisers' who would come up with the answers (just like GB did)

Under Labour, the gap between rich and poor hardly narrowed did it - still when you've got multimillionaires and lords etc spouting about 'socialism' the word hypocrats springs to mind. At least with the Tories (and I didn't vote for them) it does what it says on the tin!

MikeJones_2

I've picked this up on the Newswires this morning.

DWP has released details of HOW the change from RPI to CPI are to be dealt with in respect of pension increases.

The changes will affect deferred pensions and pensions in payment.

Examples are given in the Press Release. See:

- 12 July 2010 – Statement on moving to CPI as the measure of price inflation

Mike

I work in the field of Pension Education and Pension Guidance in the UK. I am a member of the Specialist Pensions Forum as well as being a Voluntary Adviser for The Pensions Advisory Service. I work with scheme members, employers, trustees, scheme administrators and advisers on most things to do with employer sponsored pension schemes. The views expressed by me in this thread are my personal opinions. You should seek professional advice from an appropriately experienced and qualified adviser. I am not an IFA.

StevieJ

Just a feeling from me, I sense that the govt are making decisions at the moment without understanding the full implications, I hope they don't seriously !!!! something up :eek:

artha

MikeJones wrote: »

I've picked this up on the Newswires this morning.

DWP has released details of HOW the change from RPI to CPI are to be dealt with in respect of pension increases.

The changes will affect deferred pensions and pensions in payment.

Examples are given in the Press Release. See:

- 12 July 2010 – Statement on moving to CPI as the measure of price inflation

Mike

I work in the field of Pension Education and Pension Guidance in the UK. I am a member of the Specialist Pensions Forum as well as being a Voluntary Adviser for The Pensions Advisory Service. I work with scheme members, employers, trustees, scheme administrators and advisers on most things to do with employer sponsored pension schemes. The views expressed by me in this thread are my personal opinions. You should seek professional advice from an appropriately experienced and qualified adviser. I am not an IFA.

I really still don't understand how the government can tell private firms how to make their increases in pension funds. Do they tell them how much they can pay in dividends to shareholders? Why not just continue this theme and take private industry into public ownership? But then of course they'd all have to declare themselves as closet socialists

StevieJ

artha wrote: »

I really still don't understand how the government can tell private firms how to make their increases in pension funds. Do they tell them how much they can pay in dividends to shareholders? Why not just continue this theme and take private industry into public ownership? But then of course they'd all have to declare themselves as closet socialists

I think they set a minimum standard, the private pension funds can do what they like as long as it is at least equal to this. Pension funds that are in trouble are obviously going to jump at the chance of reducing their liabilities.

Old_Slaphead

StevieJ wrote: »

I think they set a minimum standard, the private pension funds can do what they like as long as it is at least equal to this. Pension funds that are in trouble are obviously going to jump at the chance of reducing their liabilities.

But private schemes had their hand forced when the last (or the one before that) government obliged them to upgrade indexed benefits to RPI.

Trying to give pensioners better protection - the law of unintended consequences kicked in and this action was a significant factor in causing the demised of many FS schemes.

artha

StevieJ wrote: »

I think they set a minimum standard, the private pension funds can do what they like as long as it is at least equal to this. Pension funds that are in trouble are obviously going to jump at the chance of reducing their liabilities.

The pension fund to which I belong and have recently become a receiving member will probably take this opportunity especially as they have just announced that the DB scheme will become a DC scheme phased over 5 years. This is after many years of gradually downgrading the DB scheme. Ironically this comes at a time when the company is now making very large profits as a result of the leading edge industry upturn and price increases driven by the fact that the companys' products and that of competitors are in short supply on a global scale. Across the board salary increases and contractual profit related pay for employees were reintroduced in April of this year whilst pensioners got nothing in January.

I think this government are trying to soften the public sector blow by enforcing cuts on a mostly self regulating private sector that has already taken the pain and is now emerging from the recession. I just hope that the trustees of my pension fund can see this and have the power and moral fortitude to ensure that existing pensioners are not easy targets.

StevieJ

Old_Slaphead wrote: »

But private schemes had their hand forced when the last (or the one before that) government obliged them to upgrade indexed benefits to RPI.

Trying to give pensioners better protection - the law of unintended consequences kicked in and this action was a significant factor in causing the demised of many FS schemes.

I think a much more significant factor would have been the UK stockmarkets seeing no progression in the past 13 years.