“Even though the wheels were put in motion all the way back into 2006, the government’s latest initiative to engage the nation in retirement savings, auto-enrolment, is only a month old. The scheme is barely even off the ground and the powers-that-be have already felt the need to muddy the waters in the minds of the target audience. Steve Webb, Pensions Minister, said at the National Association of Pension Funds conference that the government was prepared to name and shame pension providers who allow auto-enrolment into high charging “dodgy old schemes”*.
“Surely the key driver has to be to get people to buy into auto-enrolment in the first place? The terms of how a scheme could qualify as an alternative to NEST were consulted on and the criteria included in the legislation by those responsible for it being delivered to the country. Let’s not cloud the initiative by sowing the seed of doubt in the minds of potential joiners about whether auto-enrolment will be beneficial or not.
“The crucial piece of the puzzle will be to maintain the momentum generated with a clear message of success as medium and smaller employers are brought in over the next few years. Let’s hope the high profile figures from UK business and TV used in the awareness campaign can deliver a successful ‘I’m in’ message to the nation, where the sheepdogs used in the 2001 defined contribution initiative failed to guide the flock.
“This is the latest in a number of initiatives to get the nation saving and it is essential that government, employers, providers and the public all play their part in its success. A key component will be to deal swiftly with any misinformation that could drive popular opinion and damage the scheme, and keep the momentum going. As a nation we have started on a long and winding road, but the destination is clear: we all need to be saving more for retirement. What the policymakers need to do now is quickly judge the success of auto-enrolment and, if the tide starts to turn on the initiative, move swiftly to the only feasible option remaining – compulsion.
|
