Industry experts have been outlining their key pension priorities for any incoming government following the news that a general election will be held on 4 July.

Speaking outside of 10 Downing Street earlier today (22 May), Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, confirmed that the general election will be held on 4 July.

Industry organisations have been quick to respond to the news, with Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) director of policy and advocacy, Nigel Peaple, outlining the association's top priorities for any incoming government.

He stated: "Whoever wins the forthcoming general election, we ask that the new government does three things: firstly, it sets out a plan for increasing workplace pension contributions so more people have an adequate pension in retirement; secondly, it ensures people approaching retirement receive more support and the right products; and, thirdly, it works in partnership with the pensions sector on how to attract pension fund investment to meet policy goals such as UK growth and the transition to net zero.”

Adding to this, Pensions Management Institute (PMI) director of policy and external affairs, Tim Middleton, said: “The Pensions (Extension of Automatic Enrolment) Act 2023 gained Royal Assent in September last year, but as yet we are still awaiting the regulations needed to implement the changes.

“It would be extremely frustrating for these overdue reforms to be delayed any longer. When the coalition government came to power in 2010, one of their first reforms was to the drawdown rules.

“I would hope that an incoming government would consider reforms to the Freedom and Choice regime as a priority. There is clear evidence that members are making poor decumulation decisions and an initiative to address this would be most welcome.

“Perhaps my biggest concern at this point is that there is no Shadow Pensions Minister. This is something that must be rectified as a matter of urgency.”

Hargreaves Lansdown also suggested that pensions will be a key battleground in the general election, with head of retirement analysis, Helen Morrissey, arguing that a long-term plan is needed for pensions, and the state pension triple lock in particular.

Indeed, the triple lock is expected to be a election topic, with recent research from Hargreaves Lansdown revealing that while one third (33 per cent) of savers would be more likely to vote for a party that kept the triple lock, these results vary with age, as 10 per cent of younger voters said they would actually be less likely to vote for a party that protected the triple lock.

Some early committments have already been made in this area, as the Conservative Party previously confirmed that it would maintain the state pension triple lock if re-elected, while the Labour Party is also reportedly set to include a commitment to the state pension triple lock in its upcoming manifesto.

The Liberal Democrats, meanwhile, became the first UK party to commit to protecting the state pension triple lock in the next parliament last year.

However, Hargreaves Lansdown head of retirement analysis, Helen Morrissey, warned that the political parties also need to take care if committing to pension increases means that over time they have to raise the state pension age, as the research found that 32 per cent of people said this would make them less likely to vote for a party, including 22 per cent of those aged between 18-34.

Morrissey stated: “After a period of fevered anticipation, the general election has finally been called and pensions will be a key focus.

“The state pension will continue to grab headlines, with both Conservatives and Labour confirming their commitment to the triple lock in recent weeks. It’s a controversial issue that divides the generations, with well over half of the over 55s saying a pledge to continue the reform would make them more likely to vote for a party."

This is not the only early pledge, Labour also recently confirmed that it would undertake an in-government pensions and retirement savings review if the party is elected at the next general election, to assess whether the current framework is delivering sustainable retirement incomes.

Labour’s Liz Kendall previously confirmed that the proposed review would look across the whole sector to set out proposals to ensure savers get the best possible returns and identify the ways for pension funds to invest more into UK productive assets.

And the pensions industry expressed its relief and appreciation that aspects of proposed pension policy will likely be retained if the Labour Party wins the next general election following this, with industry experts suggesting that there is unlikely to be much divergence between the parties on the Mansion House reforms,

Other areas are less clear, however, as whilst the Conservative government recently abolished the lifetime allowance with effect from April 2024, Labour previously objected to this and has pledged to reinstate the limit if elected.

"Mere moments after being announced with a flourish during the 2023 Budget, Labour definitively hit back saying it would reinstate this allowance if elected," Morrissey stated.

"The party has since gone quiet about how and when it will do this, and the pressure will be on to release more detail."

News that the UK could be heading towards a general election has prompted growing uncertainty since the start of the year, with industry research highlighting particular saver concern around the state pension provision.

And industry organisations have been sharing the key areas they want to see in the election manifestos amid the election speculation, including calls for any incoming government to commit to the timely completion of existing pension initiatives where there has been broad cross-party support.

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