As we approach the last month of the year, the industry seems to have adequacy on its mind, with multiple reports highlighting shortfalls in the current pension system and growing calls from advisors for auto-enrolment (AE) reforms.

For instance, the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) released its fourth annual UK Pensions Framework in association with Aviva, emphasising that inequalities and saving patterns should serve as “early warning signs” of widening disparities in future living standards.

In addition to this, Blackrock reported that the UK is facing a retirement crisis, with pension confidence hitting its lowest point since 2017.

Meanwhile, the International Longevity Centre (ILC) proposed that the idea of traditional retirement will be 'retired', driven by longer life expectancy and financial necessity.

Research further underscored the challenges faced by UK savers. Brits are delaying their retirement an average of 3.9 years due to the high cost of living, a survey from Compare the Market found.

Meanwhile, Hargreaves Lansdown's research revealed that nearly a fifth (16 per cent) of people do not know when they will retire, including 16 per cent of those over age 55.

Against this backdrop, it is no surprise that this week saw advisers call for broader auto-enrolment reform, considering the sheer amount of research published about inadequate retirement and what this means for savers' futures.

This week also saw new from The Pensions Regulator (TPR), which announced plans to move toward a more prudential-style of regulation, citing the "rapid" acceleration in the scale of workplace pension schemes.

In other news, AJ Bell encouraged the government to reconsider its proposal to include pensions within the scope of inheritance tax (IHT).

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) also faced criticism this week with an All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) report finding “very significant shortcomings”.

The report said the FCA came across as an “opaque and unaccountable” organisation that is slow to act, and “even slower to admit it had got things wrong and to change”. The report saw a total of 175 respondents shared their testimony.

In other pensions news, Ortec Finance revealed that UK pension funds are expected to be more resilient against climate change than their global peers. However, some UK schemes could face investment return declines exceeding 20 per cent due to transition risks.

Meanwhile, on the bulk purchase annuity (BPA) front, the market has been active this week.
Notably, an unnamed UK pension scheme agreed to a £500m BPA transaction with M&G, marking what was thought to be the market's first BPA deal to share value with a corporate sponsor.

In addition to this, the National Grid pension scheme completed a £1.7bn buy-in with Aviva, Wednesbury Pension Scheme completed a £43m buy-in with Just Group, and Mitchells & Butlers Executive Pension Plan agreed a full scheme buyout.

Finally, Pension Minister, Emma Reynolds, has been revealed as the keynote speaker at our Pensions Age Spring Conference, on Thursday 24 April 2025 at the Hilton London Tower Bridge.

You can click here to register.

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