Spare a thought for people working in the pensions industry as they try to digest not one, but ten policy documents from the government, all released at the same time. On our last podcast we discussed some of the main ideas of the Mansion House reforms - merging smaller funds, securing better value for money for members, and investing more in UK business. Phil’s back with Tom McPhail and Charlotte Moore to examine three papers we didn’t touch last time. First, we have CDCs - a new alternative to traditional pension schemes where savings are all pooled into a collective fund. Second – is there a future for DB superfunds, championed by the Tony Blair Institute? And finally – should there be consolidation in the Local Government Pension Scheme, which has 6 million members in 86 separate funds….

It’s been a big week for the pensions industry with the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s speech at the Mansion House. The Mansion House reforms are aimed at getting more money from pension funds into high growth companies. He says this could unlock 50 billion pounds into private equities and early-stage businesses. Jeremy Hunt also spoke about the government’s wish to merge smaller inefficient funds and he reminded everyone that any investments should be in the best interests of the ordinary people contributing to pension fund. So, is this a revolution or a damp squib? Here’s Phil Brown and his two expert guests - pensions and investments specialist Charlotte Moore, and leading pensions expert and media commentator Tom McPhail.

Pension providers always need to be on the lookout for the best way to invest their members’ money. Pick the right investments, and people will get larger pension pots when they come to retire. Of course, get it wrong, and the opposite happens. Well, there’s a new industry which wants to attract more investment from pension funds - the life sciences industry – that’s the industry which comes up with new drugs to keep us healthy and which proved its worth during the Covid pandemic. The UK has a great track record of coming up with ideas, but there’s a lack of financial backing, forcing start-up companies to go abroad. Today Phil Brown talks to a life science expert Dr Dan Mahony, to ask whether pension providers are letting down UK life science companies by being too slow to get onboard.

Have you heard about anchoring bias or loss aversion? They’re two concepts from the world of behavioural science. In a nutshell, it means that you can influence people’s decisions without them even knowing it. Which is why many businesses are using those insights to get people to do things they want them to do. On the podcast today Phil Brown will be hearing how pensions providers could learn a thing or two. Like how to subtly persuade people to put more into their pension pots. He’s joined by a real expert in the field…Elizabeth Costa, the Managing Director of the Behavioural Insights Team in the UK. (Oh, and by the way…when we say she’s an expert - that means sub-consciously, you trust her more!)

Imagine a world where people would be able to look at their pensions and see whether their provider was giving them good value for money. They’d be able to compare that value for money with other schemes. It might make them switch investments. It would certainly be a wake-up call for schemes which were not scoring well. That’s a vision the government is aspiring to. A consultation on how to get there has recently closed and we’re awaiting its conclusions. But how should you measure value for money? Should low costs be more important than good investment returns? Getting the metrics right is going to be a complicated job. Casting his eye over the consultation is Phil Brown, today joined by Joe Dabrowski, the deputy director of policy at the Pension Lifetime Savings Association, and Rob Yuille, Assistant Director, head of long-term savings policy at the Association of British Insurers.

Raising the state pension age has been a hot topic this year. In France it’s led to riots. Back in the UK we’ve learned that there will be no announcement on raising the state pension age until after the next general election. At the moment the age is 66. But if you were born after April 1960, you won’t get your state pension until you turn 67.And if you were born after April 1977 – you’ll be the first to have to wait till you’re 68. But are those figures fair? Do we need to review the dates…and what about being more radical – like an earlier state pension age for people who have worked in physically demanding jobs? Plenty for Phil Brown to discuss with Jo Cumbo, the Global Pensions Correspondent at the FT and Alyshia Harrington-Clark, Head of DC, Master Trusts and Lifetime Savings at the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA).

On this podcast, Phil Brown and his guests will be looking at the volatility in investment markets, and what that means for pensions. A global pandemic, a war in Europe, soaring energy costs and a cost-of-living crisis - it’s a bewildering time for those making pension choices. Phil’s joined by Alistair Byrne, Head of Retirement Strategy at State Street Global Advisors and journalist Mona Dohle, a specialist in investment at news outlets Room151 and Net Zero Investor.

The UK pensions industry needs a comprehensive review to meet the needs of people currently in work – that’s the view of the Institute of Fiscal Studies. The IFS has just published a report which says that while current pensioners are doing better than ever before, the future for generations to come is not so rosy. Many workers are saving little for retirement - particularly those in self-employment. And there are worries about the future cost of rented housing. They say it’s time for policy makers to take a fresh look at the system. Phil Brown catches up with one of the report's authors, Jonathan Cribb – Head of Retirement, Savings and Ageing at the IFS.

Recent research suggests 9 in 10 of us have experienced malicious attempts to get hold of our pensions savings. Today Phil Brown is joined by Dr Rick Muir, who helped the People’s Partnership with research into the problem - and Margret Snowdon, Chair of the Pension Scams Industry Group. So, is scamming getting worse? And what are the implications for legitimate pensions providers who use incentives to encourage customers to transfer their money?

The Chancellor’s announcements on pensions in the Spring Budget have been branded as the ‘Most critical changes to pensions in a decade’. The big surprise was Jeremy Hunt’s move to scrap the lifetime allowance on pension pots in a bid to stem the wave of early retirement – but is it the right move? And could the introduction of 30 free hours of childcare for children from 9 months help reduce the Gender Pensions Gap? Phil takes a look at the impact the Spring Budget could have on savers with the help of Lauren Wilkinson from the Pensions Policy Institute and Simoney Kyriakou from the FT Adviser.