Steve Webb

The annual contribution cap and pension transfer ban should be retained in NEST's initial period but it is essential they are both reviewed in 2017, David Yeandle says.

The Pensions Regulator has been given a budget to regulate NEST and auto-enrolment schemes, pensions minister Steve Webb confirmed today.

Failure to reduce the upper age limit on auto-enrolment into workplace pensions from state pension age (SPA) may mean workers near retirement will lose their savings to means testing, Aegon says.

The exclusion of micro-employers from auto-enrolment was ruled out due to the number of employees that would be excluded and "substantial" practical issues.

Pensions minister Steve Webb offered reassurance auto-enrolment and NEST would not lead businesses to ‘dumb down' their pension schemes.

The auto-enrolment review has proposed radically simplifying the certification process for existing workplace schemes.

Pensions minister Steve Webb has admitted over 500,000 women would be excluded from NEST under plans to raise the earnings threshold for inclusion from £5,035 to £7,500.

The DWP's free Pension Tracing Service has helped 350,000 people find out if they are eligible for a workplace pension pot from previous employers.

Today is national Older People’s Day, but some are less than enamored with the DWP’s gesture towards “the important contribution older people make to society”.

The number of people turning 65 in 2012 is predicted to be 806,000, representing a huge influx into the state pension system, according to the DWP.