pensions

Chocolate and kisses were definitely off the menu over the weekend when a demonstration was held in central London to protest the government's handling of bankrupt pension schemes, The Daily Telegraph writes.

Teachers' union group the National Union of Teachers is stepping up its efforts in its protest of the Government's proposal to raise the normal pension age from 60 to 65.

The Chartered Insurance Institute has launched a new course to aid advisers with what it believes is the ‘biggest' change facing pensions legislation - compressing eight pension rules into a single ‘universal' tax regime.

The Financial Services Authority is consumer-testing keyfacts documents to be extended across the entire regime of advised products.

Industry pensions experts believe that a time will indeed come when caps on the retirement age will be scrapped altogether.

Further confusion has developed regarding Sipps and property, to be included under the new regime from 6 April 2006.

EEF, the manufacturers' organisation, has assembled a taskforce to examine pensions strategy and arrangements to carry the UK through to 2015 and further into the future.

Mellon has criticised the Morris review for being impractical for both profession and majority of pension schemes to follow.

Scottish Life has further upgraded its online group pension facility to help intermediaries speed up their daily business activities.

Aegon's director of corporate development Laurie Edmans has been appointed as one of five non-executive directors of the new Pensions Regulator.