OpinionSep 10 2020

Letters: Govt pension freedom age hike moving the goalposts

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Leave pensioners alone

One really has to wonder as to the fitness of Paul Johnson to be the director at the IFS, considering his suggestion that pensioners are somehow in a position to fund Covid-19 debt payback.

Indeed, some pensioners may be well-off in retirement. However, the bulk of previously working-class and middle-class retirees are on fixed incomes/inflation-linked annuities or sat looking at diminishing pots in drawdown that have suffered hugely due to the current financial situation.

Targeting this group through tax is an attack on a defenceless section of society.

This group of people are almost unique in that they cannot raise further income in retirement due to covert age discrimination in the workplace, not to mention the scarcity of jobs in the first place.

They cannot benefit from future wage increases and are at the mercy of tax rises in general which can unpick carefully made retirement plans at the stroke of a keyboard.

He even goes on to say that such measures would not go anywhere near raising enough money.

One wonders what cold, callous, discriminatory, rich-feeding-the rich, kick-a-man-when-he-is-down, planet is Mr Johnson from?

Peter Neal

Prism

 

Moving the goalposts

Many thanks for your insightful and informative piece on the raising of pension access age to 57 (‘Govt confirms pension freedom age hike to 57’, Sep 3). See page 10.

One thing that was not clear to me, and therefore might not be to any others, is whether anyone who has invested in a private pension (my civil service and other workplace one have different rules) already, before the legislation being enacted, would also be bound by the age increase.

As an example: I am 43. I was considering investing £50,000 of an exit package into a self-invested personal pension or similar, with the plan that I could access all or some of that in 12 years’ time, at 55.

However, if I have understood the plans correctly, I now will not be able to access any of it (even the 25 per cent tax free portion) until I am 57?

Question: would that still be the case if I had/have managed to make my investment in a private pension before the legislation is enacted?

Or will the legislation effectively retrospectively change the T&Cs of my investment? 

That seems a little like moving the goalposts for those of us who had enough foresight to plan our early retirement.

Name and address supplied

 

Small businesses are not cash cows

James Coney is quite wrong about the reasons small businesses and even the self-employed form limited companies (‘Self-employed fault line rumbling’, April 22). 

He may be thinking about IR35, which was indeed a tax evasion gimmick as was the ‘loan’ scheme.

Of course there is all the stuff about holiday pay and sickness pay etc. But what about redundancy?

If the employees of a big company get made redundant they quite reasonably receive a payment. 

But if the business of a small business owner fails they get nothing except being stung for debts, for which the bank has compelled them to give personal guarantees.

There are several reasons why small business owners incorporate.

• Income can be very variable, hence dividends rather than salaries take account of good and bad years. 

• Many of those who contract out to small businesses require incorporation and indeed require presentation of recent accounts to reassure themselves about ability to carry out a contract.

• Pension contributions must either be made from salary, which may be made salary with limits, or from the company’s profits. If there is none of either no contributions can be made. 

Contributions cannot be made from dividend income, by the way.

Small businesses are the bedrock of an economy. They deserve not to be treated as cash cows.

Mark St Giles

Cadogan Financial

 

On the adviser’s side

Another great article (‘Do MPs still think advice is like a burger bar?’, Aug 27). It’s really refreshing to have someone in the financials on our side for a change.

I wasn’t going to write to my MP as I have heard so many stories from advisers saying that they are being ignored. 

Hopefully the message is gathering some traction because something has to change with Financial Conduct Authority levies & professional indemnity costs or we, as a small company, will not survive.

Mark Keenan

Mercia Financial Planning

 

In memory of Jack McVitie

I began my IFA career under Jack’s guidance, back in our days with Bain Clarkson – where he was managing director, Scotland – and Hogg Robinson. I learnt so much from Jack and it is true to say he is one of the reasons that I set up and started Murray Paterson.  

I met him in my first IFA job; I learned a lot from him and he really was a lovely man to be around.   

I can still see Jack and the rest of the team bedecking my desk out in Black and Yellow streamers after AEK Athens had knocked Rangers out of the Champions League in the 1990s. He was always up for a laugh, but also had a very serious business head. 

Sad, sad loss to the industry. 

Alistair Paterson

Murray Paterson