Webb said the DWP and The Pensions Regulator would aim to provide employers with the best possible tools to make decisions - and noted the DWP would provide employers with market-tested specimen literature, which would communicate pensions in plain language and explain what auto-enrolment was. He added the DWP also planned to spend £10m on communications to make the scheme a success and noted The Pensions Advisory Service was also expected to play an increasing role in communicating about pensions. Webb also spoke to Altmann about how he believed pensions had an "image problem" and likened auto-enrolment to a Ming vase - "very precious, but very fragile". Read the full story from Professional Pensions 28 November 2011 Employers with less than 50 employees will begin enrolling staff one year later than planned, in May 2015 instead of April 2014. The Government today confirmed that automatic enrolment will begin on time in autumn 2012 and all employers will remain in scope but that small businesses will be given additional time to prepare for the implementation of automatic enrolment. Under the revised timeline, small businesses (less than 50 employees) would begin automatically enrolling their staff in May 2015, instead of the current timing of April 2014. The timetable will be adjusted so that no small employers are affected by the reforms before the end of this Parliament. The rate of pensions contributions will remain unchanged until all businesses have started automatic enrolment so this measure will benefit all employers. The announcement said that further details will be published in January so are we to assume that there will no mention of the detail in tomorrow’s autumn statement? CONSULTATION ON AUTOMATIC ENROLMENT EARNINGS THRESHOLDS: REVIEW AND REVISION 2012 / 13 21 December 2011 This consultation seeks views on the automatic enrolment earnings thresholds for 2012 / 2013 to inform how the Government are to take the review of these figures forward for the first year of automatic enrolment live running. The Pensions Act 2011 requires the Government to review the automatic enrolment earnings trigger and the lower and upper limits of the qualifying earnings band each tax year. This power is flexible and allows them to ensure that automatic enrolment continues to target the right group of individuals while carefully weighing the cost to business and the impact on the pension industry. This consultation sets out our approach and proposals for the first annual review of the figures. It presents an assessment of relevant factors for each of the thresholds, sets out the thinking behind those assessments, the calculation methods considered and the evidence on which the proposals are based. AUTOMATIC ENROLMENT FOR SMALL EMPLOYERS DELAYED UNTIL 2015 Read the full press release from the DWP The Pensions Regulator press release
CIPP Policy News Journal
09/10/2012, Page 151 of 234
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker