“TASC has long argued that the private pension industry, with its history of risky investments and a high fee structure, cannot guarantee current and future pensioners a secure retirement income. That is why we are concerned that the Government’s proposed supplementary pension scheme will be funded and delivered through the private pension system. The proposals we put forward today are designed to maximise retirement security while minimising the risks to those participating in the new supplementary pension scheme”, Ms. Pentony said.

In today’s presentation to the National Pensions Framework Implementation Forum, TASC urged the Government to:

•Commit to universalising the State pension over a five-year period and increasing it to 40% of average weekly earnings over the same period
•Conduct and publish a feasibility study, combined with a cost-benefit analysis, to assess the viability of providing second-tier pensions through social insurance system
•Review auto-enrolment (‘soft mandatory’) approach after five years to assess coverage increase
•Ensure that the competitive process to select second-tier provider(s) takes account of fees/charges and provider’s track record in terms of risk management
 

TASC's updated pension policy proposals (January 2010) are available here, and TASC's respone to the National Pensions Framework (March 2010) is available here.