Almost two thirds (61 per cent) of pension professionals feel that pension policy has not been satisfactory in the six months to January 2023, up from 44 per cent the previous year, according to the Pensions Management Institute’s (PMI) Pulse Survey.

The PMI’s research, which surveyed trustees, pension managers and scheme administration, attributed the rise in policy dissatisfaction to a number of factors, including the fallout from the gilts crisis, concerns around the pensions dashboards, and perceived issues with the Defined Benefit (DB) Funding Code.

Almost four in 10 (39 per cent) survey respondents said they were concerned about the DB Funding Code, including worries about the lack of flexibility for open schemes, issues around encouraging group-think and the increased administrative burden it would place on smaller schemes.

On the gilts crisis, nearly half (48 per cent) of respondents believed government policy was at fault, while 27 per cent put the blame on investment consultants, fiduciary managers and asset managers.

More than one in 10 (11 per cent) felt the blame lied with pension scheme trustees, while 10 per cent felt it was the fault of the Bank of England.

Nearly half (48 per cent) of respondents had to act to protect their scheme, including 15 per cent of respondents who were forced into unplanned asset sales and 13 per cent who reduced hedging ratios.

The research also found that nearly half (44 per cent) were dissatisfied with The Pensions Regulator’s (TPR) actions in recent months.

Respondents highlighted factors including ‘significant delays’ in introducing pension policy and claims that TPR had been ‘too slow to react’ to the liability-driven investment (LDI) turmoil and cost-of-living crisis.

A TPR spokesperson commented: “We have set out an ambitious agenda to make the pension system the best it can be, and we look forward to working with our partners across the pensions industry to drive innovation and protect savers.

"Where issues arise, we are always keen to listen and learn. The pace of change in pensions shows no sign of slowing, and so we must all adapt. We need to do this so that pensions deliver a pot that enables savers to have confidence, empowerment and security in later life.

“We are committed to driving up value for money in the pensions market. We will evolve our regulatory approach accordingly, and we will seek assurance from the industry that this is being delivered.”

Meanwhile, although the survey found widespread support for the benefits of diversity amongst trustee boards, only 28 per cent thought their scheme was diverse.

Respondents believed that increased diversity on trustee boards would encourage reduced group thinking, better succession planning, wider experience and a more accurate representation of the membership of the scheme.

However, more than half (51 per cent) of respondents said their trustee board did not have an equality, diversity and inclusion policy.

“The last six months have been incredibly turbulent for the pensions industry,” commented PMI director of policy and external affairs, Tim Middleton.

“Many professionals have faced substantial challenges in dealing with the fallout of the LDI turmoil and the cost-of-living crisis.

“At the same time, new regulatory hurdles including the DB Funding Code and uncertainty over the implementation of pensions dashboards have caused disruption.

“Understandably, dealing with these problems as well as the substantial regulatory reforms have left many feeling frustrated at the current direction of pensions policy.”

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