The SPP's "What’s Next for UK Pensions?" thought leadership paper sets out an ambitious but practical blueprint for the future of UK pensions, offering recommendations to help inform the next phase of Government reform and support the development of a simpler, fairer and more sustainable system
Tags: adequacy, CDC, DB, DC, Decumulation, Guided Retirement, investment, Investments, legislation, pension, Pensions, pensions commission, PPF, retirement, Savings, Scale,
The Society of Pension Professionals (SPP) has backed the Government’s proposed 3.25% fixed rate for Guaranteed Minimum Pension (GMP) revaluation from April 2027, while calling for an end to repeated consultations on what it describes as a routine, formulaic exercise.
The SPP response explains how the final rules must protect savers and pension schemes from unexpected tax charges and unnecessary administrative complexity.
Tags: NMPA, pension, Pension Age, Pensions,
The Society of Pension Professionals (SPP) paper on rethinking pensions policy for the self-employed.
Tags: adequacy, pension, Pensions, Self-Employed, sole traders,
The SPP concludes that contingent assets should not be regarded as second-best substitutes for cash. Properly structured, they can allow trustees and sponsors to share risk more intelligently, combining member protection with sponsor flexibility and commercially sustainable outcomes.
Tags: Accounting, Contingent Assets, covenant, DB Pensions, Funding Code, pension, Pensions, Tax,
The SPP welcomes the government’s ambition to harness scale for Defined Contribution (DC) pension schemes but our response to the DWP discussion paper on key elements of the Scale Policy, warns that an extended regulatory timeline risks creating paralysis in industry planning, stifling innovation, and compressing execution risk as the 2030 deadline approaches.
There are also various areas that require urgent regulatory clarity and greater flexibility, particularly regarding the definition of Common Investment Strategies (CIS) and the measurement of scheme scale.
Tags: 2030, Consolidation, DC, Defined Contribution, pension, Pension Schemes Act 2026, Pensions, Scale,
The SPP welcomes the DWP draft Regulations on surplus flexibilities for DB pension schemes as they provide an appropriate framework for well-funded schemes to release surplus while protecting members. However, we are calling for changes to make the regime more practical, particularly for schemes intending to remain on a long-term run-on basis. The proposed process is geared towards one-off payments and could make regular or phased distributions unnecessarily burdensome.
Tags: DB, DB Pensions, pension, Pensions, Surplus, Surplus Extraction, surplus release,
While supporting the fundamental objective of putting the General Levy on a sustainable footing and ensuring regulatory bodies are properly resourced, our consultation response urges the Government to provide a clear, evidence-based justification for these “disproportionate” rises.
Tags: General Levy, pension, Pension Schemes, Pensions, Pensions Industry, Review,
This SPP consultation response calls for family law reforms to protect pension rights in divorce and cohabitation.
Tags: Cohabitation, Divorce, family, pension, Pensions, Relationships,
This paper synthesises insights from a major industry roundtable of leading actuaries, trustees, legal advisers, investment managers, and covenant specialists, facilitated by the SPP.
The paper challenges traditional industry momentum by examining how improved funding positions, a £160 billion aggregate surplus across UK DB schemes, and new alternatives such as superfunds and capital run-on strategies have transformed the endgame landscape.
Tags: Buy-out, covenant, Endgame, Insurance, pension, Pensions, Risk transfer, Run-on, Superfunds,
This is a comprehensive practical framework to guide pension scheme trustees, advisers, and administrators through responsible AI leadership.
Tags: Administrators, Advisers, AI, Artificial Intelligence, Consultants, Digital, Framework, Guide, Leadership, pension, Pensions, trustees,
SPP welcomes plans for simpler pension transfers but warns they are
unlikely to work as intended in practice and so suggests a range of practical solutions.
Tags: legislation, pension, Pension Transfers, Pensions, Transfers,