Conservatives pledge to 'simplify' pension rules

The Conservatives have unveiled proposals to “reduce and simplify complex pensions rules” and promised to encourage more firms to provide pension schemes for workers.

Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary David Willetts pledged to cut back on the “mountain of red tape”, which he claimed was “strangling” the pensions industry and arrange for a “massive reduction” in pensions regulations. He told a press conference: "We are inviting key representatives of the pension industry to take the lead in delivering a massive reduction in the volume of these regulations. This isn't about changing the substance of the law. It is about making the law easier to understand."

Mr Willetts said that Labour had introduced “more than a thousand pages” of pensions regulation since they came to power in 1997, but he said that the regulation was “making things worse, not better”.

The Conservatives also pledged to reform state benefits, provide pensioners with “a decent contributory pension”, which would grow in line earnings and reform the issue of contributions in order to give women “a fair deal”.

The party also pledged to abolish the requirement to put an annuity at the age of 75, while strengthening company pension schemes. Mr Willetts said: "There should be no upper limit on pension tax relief provided that all employees of a company pension scheme can join on similar terms - I don't mind fat cats as long as there are fat kittens as well.”

Mr Willetts concluded: "There is no magic bullet that will make the pensions crisis disappear. But there are practical steps that could start to get Britain saving again."

The Liberal Democrats also pledged to improve pensions at their manifesto launch yesterday, promising £100 on the basic state pension for the over 75s and a Citizen’s Pension, which they say would give women a full basic pension by right, not based on contributions.

The Labour government recently introduced the Pension Protection Fund, designed to protect workers from losing their pension in the event of their employers declaring bankruptcy.

(KMcA/GB)