The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has called for a “pragmatic” approach to dashboard delivery in order to get it up and running.

Speaking yesterday, 3 June, DWP deputy director for private pensions policy, Clare Talbot, said that one of the biggest blockers to a successful implementation of the dashboard it “hoping to achieve consensus on everything” and called on the industry to accept the approach that will be taken by the newly formed delivery group.

Yesterday, the Money and Pensions Service appointed Chris Curry as principal of the Pensions Dashboard Industry Delivery Group, which will work to develop the data standards and other criteria that the dashboard will need to meet.

Making the comments at the Association of British Insurers Long-Term Savings Conference, Talbot said: “The biggest blocker is hoping to achieve consensus on everything, I think actually it’s time to be really pragmatic and help make delivery happen.

“I think we have to accept that the approach that Chris and we [the DWP] will take may not please everyone, but I think it’s a case of getting the dashboard up and running, and we might have to be pragmatic in that approach.”

Current priorities of the working group include making it consistent, easy to use, secure and its ability to contain all the information the consumers needs in order to feel confident and engaged with their savings.

Concerns around the dashboard have been raised in relation to including costs and charges from day one, which some argue could lead to a credibility issue for the dashboard.

However, Talbot said: “It’s about building a dashboard that has the information that enables people to act, I am concerned about overwhelming people, for people to have another screen to look at that has lots of complicated information that they don’t fully understand.

“Before we get to charges and fees, I don’t think we should underestimates showing different types of pensions on one screen before moving on to other complexities.”

Regarding the timeline, Talbot added that the three- to four-year time “window” for schemes to get a dashboard up and running will start after the pensions bill has been passed.

The dashboard delivery group will be responsible “developing a clear timeline”.

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