This week has been another big one for the pensions industry, defined by discussion and innovation as voices from all across the pensions sphere shared their opinions ahead of the Autumn Statement.

The Autumn Statement was, of course, the biggest news of the week, especially following Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s confirmation that the government will retain the state pension triple lock following recent uncertainty as to the policy’s fate.

This announcement was in line with the wishes of the UK population, as it was also revealed this week that 68 per cent of UK adults support an inflation-matching increase in the state pension over the next year.

Proposed reforms to Solvency II were also announced as a part of the statement, with industry experts estimating that this could unlock up to £100bn of investment in productive finance over the next 10 years.

The statement was on many people’s mind this week even before it started though, as people in the industry had their say on what they wanted the chancellor to announce, with calls for the chancellor to make sure that individuals continue to be properly incentivised to save for their future.

This was very much a week for the industry to make its voice heard, as AJ Bell also called for a minimum £10,000 increase to the money purchase annual allowance in a letter to chief secretary to the treasury, John Glen.

Concerns around the impact of inflation have also persisted, after hitting 11.1 per cent in October, with XPS Pensions Group senior consultant, Charlotte Jones warning that this continued increase "could prove detrimental to pensioners purchasing power as XPS noted that there are around 4.5 million pensioners receiving defined benefit (DB) pensions that are unlikely to keep pace with inflation due to inflation caps in place”.

The government also had a busy week outside of the Autumn Statement as The Pensions Dashboards Regulations 2022 were approved by MPs and peers, which was highlighted as a “major step” by the Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP).

The Work and Pensions Committee also took evidence for its inquiry into DB pensions with liability-driven investments (LDI) this week, with the Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA) arguing in its evidence that LDI remains “fit for purpose”.

This week has certainly been a busy one for the industry, something that I feel has become more and more common in recent times, but it might be one of the most positive weeks I can remember in a long time.

With voices from all across the industry sharing their thoughts and the government pushing ahead with pension policies it feels the industry is really building towards something and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

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