Looking at how pensions have changed over the last few decades, former Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls noted that we must always be prepared for the unexpected.

Speaking at the PLSA Investment Conference today, Balls highlighted that in the midst of Brexit and Donald Trump coming to power, we must look back to realise that dramatic change in the pensions industry is possible.

Despite the largely unscathed pensions space in today's Spring Budget, Balls said that the industry must look back to compare how real change has taken place.

Discussing issues in 1990, he said: "We thought that our big challenge would be pensioner poverty, if you go back to 1990 average pensioner income was 30 per cent lower than the average income of a non-pensioner person in our country. Pensioners were a long way behind."

Nonetheless, Balls claimed that what the industry "didn't see" is a "big catch-up of pensioner incomes" with pensioner incomes now 30 per cent higher than the average working age income.

"There are some mistakes that in retrospect is right there in front of you but you didn't see it. We also made a big mistake in the very beginning of the decade when we decided to keep the basic pension uprating in line with earnings, probably the most expensive mistakes ever made in economic policy," he said.

Balls commented that a key lesson for policymakers is that "often the unexpected happens but if you can get on top of this, the better prepared you will be".

Also discussing the main theme of the conference, diversity, Balls stated that "what diversity does is it gives you different perspectives to challenge assumptions" and therefore expect the unexpected.

"Diversity is fine, but you've got to have a culture where challenge is accepted".

However, Balls also discussed that while diversity is necessary, as is consensus. "It is consensus that delivers real change."

The thing that through time eventually become consensual are the things that last, Balls said. "Compared to other European countries we've done a good job in facing pensions challenges as where we've moved forward we've managed to do so consensualy."

This included a cross-party consensus around auto-enrolment,

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