Importance of retirement planning highlighted by campaign

A Government campaign launched this week has highlighted the importance of planning and saving for retirement.

The campaign comes ahead of the auto-enrolment initiative that launches in October this year. The adverts will explain the fundamentals of the pension reforms, and signpost people to the Directgov website.

Commenting, Iain Duncan Smith, the minister for pensions said: "As we head into the final stretch before millions of people begin to be enrolled into a workplace pension, it is vital that we make sure that individuals and employers know what to expect.

"Automatic enrolment will transform this country, putting an end to the decline in pension saving, and setting millions on course for a more prosperous retirement."

But while the campaign is welcome, the state pension also needs to be reformed before we can be confident of auto-enrolment, according to Dr Ros Altmann, director general of Saga.

Commenting, Dr Altmann said: "Anything we can do to make sure people save for later life is a good thing and this latest campaign, although small in scale compared to other initiatives, will go some way towards helping to improve the lives of older people.

"A redesign of pension products is necessary to avoid for example punitive measures where state pension penalties are imposed through means testing.

"We know that people begin thinking about their pensions far too late. There needs to be a culture shift around pensions in the UK and perhaps this campaign will help people see that saving for later life needs to be part of our ‘savings culture' from an early age - and certainly not a last minute decision when you are in your forties or later. "

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