The Money and Pensions Service (Maps) has announced that the delayed Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP) consultation on pensions dashboards’ data standards will open on 6 July 2020.

The consultation was initially scheduled for earlier this year but was delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

It will seek industry-wide input on the data scope and data definitions working papers that were published alongside the PDP’s dashboards progress report in April.

The PDP will also convene a ‘Data Working Group’, representing all sectors across the pensions industry, which will meet for a series of discussions to help finalise a set of data standards later this year.

PDP principal, Chris Curry, commented: “We know the sector has responded well to the current crisis and there is enthusiasm to engage once again in the important detail of delivering pensions dashboards. We are now making good progress on a number of fronts and are ready to shape detailed data requirements with the help of the industry while also starting engagement with the tech firms which will help us build the dashboard ecosystem.

“The concept behind pensions dashboards is simple but there are still complicated technical and regulatory hurdles to overcome. The work of the next few months will be significant in helping us develop a timeline for the delivery of these services.”

The PDP has also started a 6-week period of engagement with potential suppliers of IT services to the dashboards.

These suppliers would deliver the “digital architecture” of the dashboards and the PDP hopes that this engagement will allow it to examine the readiness, capacity and capability of firms that may be interested.

Its formal procurement process is expected to begin in Autumn 2020, with potential suppliers asked to register their interest by 31 July.

Pensions Minister, Guy Opperman, added: “This engagement between the PDP and potential suppliers of the dashboard infrastructure will pave the way for a formal procurement process this autumn. Alongside this, its imminent call for input on data standards is another crucial step towards putting individuals in control of their financial futures.

“The measures included in the Pension Schemes Bill currently going through Parliament will compel pension providers to make consumers data available to them via dashboards. I would encourage schemes to be on the front foot and to get ‘data ready’ now.

“There remains plenty of work to be done, but this is a hugely exciting innovation, one that I believe will bring pensions into the digital age and transform the way we all think about and plan for retirement.”

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