All Opinion articles – Page 27
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OpinionTime for a summer stocktake
Julian Mund, the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association’s chief executive, reflects on 2019 so far – from master trust authorisation to impressive auto-enrolment figures. But despite some positive developments this year, Mr Mund notes that there is still a significant amount of uncertainty over what the next few months have in store for the pensions industry.
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Opinion
Why s72 requests have ramped up in recent years
Analysis: The Pensions Regulator's "clearer, quicker and tougher" approach is one of the main reasons behind the recent spike in section 72 requests, experts say.
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OpinionMultiple tax treatments create yet another gap
Editorial: Never underestimate the power of well-organised workers providing a public service, even when faced with a chancellor whose conservative idols took on the trades unions.
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OpinionWho will protect us from slow-footed regulators?
I was not working as a journalist in the late 1980s when the last big personal pension scandal broke, but the spectre of this mis-selling debacle has loomed large over the financial services sector for three decades.
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OpinionLarge DC schemes are warming to target date funds
Data crunch: Target date funds have seen widespread adoption in the US defined contribution market, but the UK has so far resisted change with schemes overwhelmingly using lifestyle approaches. However, data from our most recent DC Monitor survey indicates that an increasing proportion of schemes are gravitating towards target date.
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OpinionTPR: We do not care what your name is and neither does the law
Darren Ryder of the Pensions Regulator has a stark message for employers and advisers using rebranding to avoid auto-enrolment duties, and encourages advisers to cover their own backs.
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OpinionDoes your manager have the right mindset for persistence?
Adrian Furnham has three doctorates, has written over 650 scientific papers and 55 books, and has dedicated part of his career to identifying the behavioural flaws that make investors with good ideas unlikely to perform – but sometimes asset managers make it easy for him.
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OpinionPension risk transfers: How can we best manage employee anxiety?
A time of unprecedented change is seeing schemes closed, bought out, consolidated and even benefits changed. Sue Cox of like minds talks trustees and employers through how good communication can smooth the journey for members.
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OpinionFive building blocks for impact management
Franklin Real Asset Advisors’ John Levy says it is time for impact investing to move from merely measuring positive outcomes to managing impact.
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OpinionThe end is nigh for DB pensions
The defined benefit pensions industry has reached a tipping point, writes Paul McGlone, president of the Society of Pension Professionals.
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OpinionGearing up for GMP equalisation
Sackers’ Joanna Smith sets out a helpful checklist for pension schemes to plan ahead of guaranteed minimum pension equalisation.
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OpinionSimplifying our taxation system may have to wait
Editorial: Do pension issues keep Boris Johnson awake at night? At first instance one suspects the plight of pensioners comes some distance behind gaining power and self-preservation on our presumed next prime minister’s list of priorities.
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OpinionDRCs have little or no measurable impact on regular dividends
Very few companies actually cut their dividend per share to fund large deficit reduction contributions, says Professor Seth Armitage of the University of Edinburgh Business School, whose recent research found that companies usually only cut dividends in response to poor profit rather than to cash outflows.
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OpinionThe mirage of independence
What does independence mean to you? Does it mean being free of control or influence by third parties? Does it mean making decisions without fear or favour?
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OpinionHave DGFs had their day?
Data crunch: Diversified growth funds continue to face several challenges, from performance problems to competition from new product types. But despite these obstacles, this is not the end of the road for DGFs, argues Broadridge’s Jonathan Libre.
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OpinionPension funds must not ‘sell our future’
The UK government has finally sprung into action on climate change with a commitment to net-zero emissions by 2050, but will this be enough? Accounting for Sustainability’s Kerry Perkins and Sustineri’s Richard Folland set out a checklist for trustees to play their part in preventing a climate emergency.
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OpinionSmall schemes, big changes: How to tackle the UK governance problem
Dalriada Trustees’ Vassos Vassou sees professionalising the UK’s trustee boards as a potential solution to the governance failings at small UK schemes. But with few sub-scale schemes able to afford the extra cost, could a regulatory levy be used to boost board expertise?
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OpinionA sharper pensions system offers savers safe harbour
If there is any positive to be taken from the downfall of ‘star’ fund manager Neil Woodford, the source of much chatter in the investment world this month, it is that it reminds us of the value of workplace institutions and the collective saving systems we enjoy in the UK.
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OpinionPursuing simplicity remains vital
Schemes must be transparent, non-complex and focused on member outcomes, if the industry is to retain consumer confidence, writes ACA chair Jenny Condron.
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Opinion
What is the most important feature of a good DC scheme?
Data crunch: There is no doubt that defined contribution pension schemes face a large number of challenges in their quest to deliver good member outcomes.