Budget 2017

jamesd

marlot wrote: »

Scrapping the LTA gets my vote - I know several GPs who are planning to retire imminently as they are up to the LTA and feel they may as well go.

Or at least set it to a more sensible and equal guaranteed income level between DB and DC. Even with the huge DB tax break vs DC those GPs are illustrating its undesirable effect at the current low level.

atush

How about setting it to what MPs and other high level civil servants gold plated DB pensions provide?

kidmugsy

I know two GPs who've bailed out early because of LTA. One has gone back to practise part time, the other has retired completely. The lowering of LTA was one of the poorest decisions of the Great Pension Liberator. Perhaps Hammond could simultaneously raise the DB multiplier to 35 and raise the LTA to a couple of million. Or somewhat less, to avoid the emotional impact on the envious of 'Two Million!'; it was £1.8M when Labour lost office, so that would do.

dunstonh

westv wrote: »

Surprised there isn't a thread yet.
Surely somebody wants to claim an end to the 25% lump sum.

I would like to see us get to 2018 before that happens because we can then say there has been 30 years of people predicting that in the budgets without it happening.

I suspect that there is ongoing going to be tweaks in non-essential areas over the next few years as Brexit and priority issues (e.g. NHS) are focused on. You cannot really see the Govt being radical in areas like pensions when they have to focus much of their resources on these other things.

jamesd

Given that the limit is currently £50k for DB two approaches might be options to even out the treatment a bit:

1. A floor set at whatever it costs to buy a new inflation linked annuity with spousal pension for the actual spouse,or a generic spouse of the same age (same to be gender neutral), for some level of income that seems appropriate, perhaps the current £50k DB limit. Which at 2.5% annuity rate would currently mean two million.
2. More restrictively, valuing any annuity purchase within a few years on no worse than DB multiplier. So spend £400k to buy £10k of guaranteed income at 2.5% annuity rate and it's LTA value is £200k.

JoeCrystal

Personally, all I am hoping for is anything that help a basic taxpayer to save more toward the retirement scheme such as an higher increase in auto-enrolment contribution from the employer and even better tax relief so on.

kidmugsy

If you goggle

Forget Black Friday — buy into a pension while tax reliefs last

you can click through to the FT to see what The Blessed Merryn thinks: she says that higher rate relief should be cut, and probably will be (though she puts no date on it).

She also suggest a half million as a figure for the LTA. But then she's probably teasing.

dunstonh

Wasnt it the 2015 budget where one of the papers had a headline that was 20 things you will see in this budget. And not one of those things was in the budget.

liviboy

ex-pat_scot wrote: »

- tax statements. We are now "customers" apparently. Or "clients" or some such, of the state. I would very much like one clear statement each year from the government, delivered via HMRC, that states the following:
1. THANK YOU FOR PAYING TAX of £xx. It might seem trivial, but it would be a huge cultural move to recognise the contributions of those of us who are paying in to the system.
2. It needs to clearly state how much state income has been generated by your activity, ie including tax, ers and ees NIC.
3. A statement of where it is being spent. (they'd never disclose this though!)
4. a confirmation of the achievement of another year's pension entitlement ("NI stamp")
5. a reminder of projected SPA
6. a summary of the number of years' accumulated state pension achieved, with a projection of future accrual and what that would provide overall at SPA.
7. links to FSCS, MAS, TPAS etc for futher information, support, calculators etc.

Doesn't the majority of this already come in the form of the "Annual Tax Summary" thing that we all get sent (it was one of Osbourne's great ideas)?

All that would need to be added is the SPA information and good to go.

I personally find the whole idea a waste of money but each to their own...we all know we pay into the system, do we really need a "THANK YOU" letter from HMRC? I'd rather get rid of the inequality of people getting thousands of pounds for frankly sitting on their bums! But that's a discussion for another day!

OneInTheHat

I'd like to see the annual allowance scrapped but keeping the LTA. That is just from my personal perspective. I find myself single in later life but unable to contribute a lump sum into a pension which is frustrating.

I am wondering whether at some point they will look at means testing the state pension. All these press stories about how 'wealthy' pensioners are makes me think at some point this will be on their radar (not this government I don't think).