As we creep closer to Christmas, many of us will take time to reflect on the past year and make plans for the year ahead. While I may be well past the age of sending my list of presents to Santa, Christmas still feels like the perfect moment to make a few wishes.

In an industry that never shies away from voicing what it does and doesn’t want, Christmas feels like the ideal moment to set intentions for the future of pensions. With this in mind, Pensions Age asked industry experts: if you could ask Father Christmas to improve one thing in the UK pensions landscape, what would be on your wish list?

Unsurprisingly, what appears to be top of many wish lists this year is adequacy.

Festina Finance UK country head, Dan McLaughlin, said: “I think we all agree that every saver deserves a pension that provides a decent standard of living in retirement, not just the bare minimum."

Russell Investments fiduciary manager, Aqib Merchant, also wished for adequacy and emphasised that beyond structure, the industry must ensure people are saving enough.

“Reviewing contribution levels and incentives is essential to improve long-term financial resilience for the UK’s workforce,” he said.

While surprises may be welcome on Christmas morning, Merchant wants no surprises in the pension industry, suggesting that fiscal shocks erode confidence faster than they raise revenue.

“Simplicity is the best stimulus: it builds trust, supports investment, and secures better retirements,” he said.

SEI head of master trust, David Snowdon, shared a similar wish, calling for stability in UK pensions and a structure that lasts for at least the next 20 years "without constant tinkering".

Additionally, Hughes Price Walker director, Ray Hughes, also asked for simplicity in governance, but what truly topped his Christmas list was a world free from pension scammers.

“A sprinkle of magic to turn every scammer into a kind, honest citizen would be the ultimate Christmas miracle,” Hughes noted.

Meanwhile, Aon partner and head of UK retirement policy, Matthew Arends, is asking for the removal of regulatory uncertainty, a concern pension schemes identify as paramount.

Indeed, he highlighted that in Aon’s recent Global Pension Risk Survey, regulatory risk was the second-largest threat to paying defined benefit (DB) pensions on time, underscoring widespread anxiety over the pace and extent of policy change.

It is no surprise that this is top of people’s minds due to the regulatory change in the DB universe, including the revised funding regime, new surplus release rules, own risk assessments, and dashboards.

He also pointed out that defined contribution (DC) stakeholders share similar concerns, with major reforms such as guided retirements, the advice guidance boundary review, development of collective DC (CDC) and value-for-money requirements each set to cause further change.

Isio director, Iain McLellan, also wished for something in the DC space; he asked Santa to align the availability of retirement CDC schemes with the Guided Retirement requirements. He noted that this would allow those running DC arrangements to include retirement CDC as part of the development of their default decumulation options.

Now that all the wish lists have been sent off, all that remains is to wait and see until the big day what Father Christmas will bring us. Here’s hoping we have been put on the good list this year.

Season's greetings from the Pensions Age team! Wishing you a happy holidays and a healthy New Year.

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