The speaker at our March luncheon meeting, held at Tickton Grange, was M/s Ruth Bamforth, daughter of our President, Stuart Bamforth.
A lawyer specialising in pension schemes, Ruth chose as her subject: “Pensions: will the spectre of the past come to haunt us?” An awesome prospect.
However, as Ruth pointed out, before leading us fluently and gently through the pensions maze, nothing actually changes very much. It is no secret that the UK’s population is ageing, and by 2050 estimates suggest that 24% will be over 65, and 6% 0f those will be over 85. The level of savings, at present levels, required to provide the necessary pensions’, will be woefully inadequate.
Pensions are not the invention of the welfare state, but have their origins in the medieval pensions given for services to the monarch. These were often in the form of food, drink and accommodation, notably to staff of religious houses. State pensions came in in 1909, replacing the 17th century Poor Laws, which had been administered by parishes. In 1908 an Old Age Pensions Act was passed for the over-70s, giving the equivalent of £20 a week in today’s money, provided incomes were less than 10 shillings per week!
Occupational pensions have a different history. As far back as 1601, pensions were payable to injured seamen and soldiers, and in 1739 to Bank of England staff, but most such pensions came in after World War 2. Vast sums have been invested to provide these, and since the Robert Maxwell scandal much more stringent regulations have been introduced. But tax relief on these schemes is gradually being eroded, and there is tension between government and employers, the latter being unwilling to spend vast sums to fund pensions, and the former saying they must! As is to be expected these days, pension provision produces huge amounts of paper, and even more expense has been incurred by the setting up of the Pension Protection Fund.
The UK situation is not helped by the generous state pensions paid in Europe. To meet the challenges, the Government has decided to raise the retirement age to 68, despite the fact that, for many, the prospect of having to work till that age is daunting, to say the least. Also worrying is the fact that there is much unemployment in the 16-24 age group. Another of the Government’s answers is to introduce a flat-rate pension of £144 a week . This would be for new pensioners after, say, 2017.
The long-term aim is to ensure that employers and employees share the pension risks/provisions, but it is not clear what the scheme will look like, and there will be need for more legislation and regulations!
Ruth ended her fascinating talk by quoting the former horror film actor, Bela Lugosi, who said: “I don’t have a dime left. I am dependent on my friends for food, and on a small old-age pension.” Have times changed much?
Any retired professional or businessman interested in joining the Club is invited to contact the Secretary, Mike Welch (01430 872797). We meet for lunch, at Tickton Grange, on the 3rd Wednesday of each month, and at the same venue for coffee with our partners on the 1st Wednesday.