Pension plan will pull savers' socks up
As the government has announced a new pensions scheme, for which people may be automatically signed up, research has revealed that Brits are suffering from 'savings inertia'.Under the new scheme, all employees will be given access to a workplace pension with a contribution from their employer. But after research has shown that people are lazy when it comes to pensions, the government may have to ensure that workers are automatically enrolled.In the Attitudes to Pensions report, 84 per cent of people surveyed supported the idea of a national pension savings scheme, and a further 68 per cent liked the idea of automatic enrolment.The report revealed that although, in theory people acknowledged the importance of saving for the future, a third have never bothered to pay in to a private pension. Moreover, one in four people said they knew little or nothing about pensions, which was a reason given for not saving for retirement.Secretary of state for work and pensions, John Hutton, commented: "The new pensions saving scheme we are setting out today will be a major step forward for employees across Britain and can kick-start a new culture of retirement saving."We know that people are far more likely to save for their retirement if they have access to a simple, low cost pension with a contribution from their employer. That is exactly what Personal Accounts will provide."The details of the new scheme we are setting out today can help people overcome the inertia that holds people back from saving while taking important steps to protect existing pension provision."
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