Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has delivered her 2026 Spring Statement, in what was an expectedly low-key event with no mention of pension policy.

In the build up to the event, pensions industry figures had called for clarity and stability, with the majority not expecting much in the way of pension announcements or reforms.

This proved to be the case, with Reeves delivering a speech lacking any fiscal or tax changes, and sticking to announcing revised forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).

“The Chancellor has remained true to the government’s commitment to one major fiscal event each year, and today’s Spring Statement has proved to be more of an economic update than a platform for new policy,” said Standard Life retirement savings director, Mike Ambery.

“Following last November’s Budget – one of the government’s set-piece moments – this was a low-key event, especially for pensions.

“The main statement of note was the government reaffirming benefit upratings and reiterating that the full new state pension will rise by 4.8 per cent from April to £241.30 per week.”

Ambery noted that, for pension policy, a notable feature of the statement had been what was not announced, and the absence of speculation around pension reliefs, allowances, or structural reform was welcome.

“Over the past two years, repeated conjecture about potential changes has not helped people’s confidence and trust in long-term saving,” he continued.

“Stability matters, and avoiding another cycle of uncertainty later this year would be welcome for both individuals and employers planning ahead. For now, pensions stay steady – but the real shape of the future will be cast by the reforms still to come.”

In the OBR economic and fiscal outlook papers, the organisation noted that changes to inheritance tax (IHT) policy in the October 2024 Budget, including bringing pensions into scope of the tax, accounted for around 14 per cent of total IHT revenue by 2030/31.

However, it highlighted that behavioural responses to these measures and the tax base for inheritable pension wealth were “particularly uncertain”, which added further uncertainty to the forecast.

Meanwhile, the surplus on unfunded public service pensions was forecast to rise from a £600m deficit in 2025/26 to a £5bn surplus in 2030/31.

Compared to the November forecast, net public service pension spending was expected to be £1.4bn lower in 2030/31 due to higher forecast public sector wage growth.

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