Shortly before Parliament closed for its summer holidays, the government announced a review of the State pension age (SPA). Pensioners are a sensitive topic for the government. Not only has it been forced to make a U-turn on winter fuel payments, but it has also had to stand firm against the Women Against State Pension […]
The government has published its reply to the many responses made to last October’s consultation paper on bringing pensions within the scope of inheritance tax (IHT). In last October’s Budget, the Chancellor announced two major changes to IHT, both of which were immediately put out to consultation. The first, which takes effect in April 2026, […]
August’s cut in interest rates of 0.25% was far from straightforward and has implications for future moves. The Bank of England was given independence to set interest rates in May 1997. Since then, the Bank Rate has been decided by a vote of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which consists of nine […]
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have been surveying 40–75 year olds, with some interesting responses. The DWP have recently released the results of its second ‘Planning and Preparing for Later Life’ survey, based on questions posed to over 4,000 people aged between 40 and 75. The answers showed some conflicted – or […]
With changes to Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) expected in the Autumn Budget, one existing variant has been heavily criticised by the Treasury Select Committee. The Lifetime ISA (LISA) made its debut in George Osborne’s final Budget in March 2016. At the time, it appeared to be a proposal for a new form of pension savings […]
The government wants to encourage investment, not savings. “For too long, we have presented investment in too negative a light…quick to warn people of the risks, without giving proper weight to the benefits…” These words may sound like the rhetoric of the chief executive officer of a fund management company, but they are not. In […]
