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Written Question
Pensions: Advisory Services
Thursday 30th July 2015

Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they plan to publish information on the uptake and effectiveness of Pension Wise.

Answered by Lord O'Neill of Gatley

Since its launch in April, Pension Wise has helped nearly 950,000 people understand their options and make informed choices about what to do with their retirement savings. Nearly 18,000 free guidance appointments over the phone and face to face are being delivered and more than 925,000 people have used the Pension Wise website, with many people returning to the site regularly.

The government is closely monitoring the operation and effectiveness of the Pension Wise service. This ongoing monitoring is part of a wider programme of evaluation that the government is undertaking to ensure that Pension Wise is working effectively, delivers value for money, and meets consumer needs.


Written Question
Pensions: Advisory Services
Monday 27th July 2015

Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the availability of affordable advice for savers wishing to exercise their new pension freedoms.

Answered by Lord O'Neill of Gatley

Pension Wise provides free and impartial guidance on what consumers can do with their pension pots, helping them make a decision which best suits their personal circumstances. The guidance encourages customers to think about how they can best provide for themselves in the future, and prompts them to think about how long their money needs to last.

As part of this, Pension Wise helps people understand when professional financial advice could be useful and how to access it by referring them to the Money Advice Service’s new Retirement Advisor Directory. The Directory helps people find a local advisor which serves their pot size, can provide a specialist type of retirement advice service, and displays information on whether they charge a minimum fee.

The government believes that it is vital that consumers should have access to professional financial advice if they need it, and supports the work of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to encourage the development of affordable models of advice to help service this need.


Written Question
Citizens Advice
Wednesday 1st July 2015

Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the current waiting time for an in-person interview with Citizens Advice.

Answered by Lord O'Neill of Gatley

The government committed to providing free, impartial guidance through Pension Wise, to help people make informed and confident decisions about how they use their defined contribution pension savings in retirement. It is available online, via the telephone and face to face.

As of 6 April – the date on which the new pension flexibilities commenced – Pension Wise had handled more than 3,600 calls since the opening of the contact centre in late March. Nearly 1400 people had booked a telephone guidance appointment with the Pensions Advisory Service, while nearly 380 people had booked a face to face appointment with Citizens Advice. Citizens Advice does not provide Pension Wise guidance over the phone.

Information on Pension Wise service usage since 6 April will be published in due course.

Pension Wise recommends that users take their time to prepare and gather relevant information before their guidance session, if they have not already done so by the time of booking their appointment; this can normally take around 2 weeks. The government estimates that, on average, face to face appointments take place within 9 days of booking.


Written Question
Pensions: Advisory Services
Wednesday 1st July 2015

Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people sought (1) telephone advice, and (2) an in-person interview, with Citizens Advice in (a) April following the commencement of the Pensions Schemes Act 2015, and (b) May.

Answered by Lord O'Neill of Gatley

The government committed to providing free, impartial guidance through Pension Wise, to help people make informed and confident decisions about how they use their defined contribution pension savings in retirement. It is available online, via the telephone and face to face.

As of 6 April – the date on which the new pension flexibilities commenced – Pension Wise had handled more than 3,600 calls since the opening of the contact centre in late March. Nearly 1400 people had booked a telephone guidance appointment with the Pensions Advisory Service, while nearly 380 people had booked a face to face appointment with Citizens Advice. Citizens Advice does not provide Pension Wise guidance over the phone.

Information on Pension Wise service usage since 6 April will be published in due course.

Pension Wise recommends that users take their time to prepare and gather relevant information before their guidance session, if they have not already done so by the time of booking their appointment; this can normally take around 2 weeks. The government estimates that, on average, face to face appointments take place within 9 days of booking.


Written Question
Pensions: Advisory Services
Wednesday 1st July 2015

Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people sought telephone advice from The Pensions Advisory Service in (1) April following the commencement of the Pensions Schemes Act 2015, and (2) May.

Answered by Lord O'Neill of Gatley

The government committed to providing free, impartial guidance through Pension Wise, to help people make informed and confident decisions about how they use their defined contribution pension savings in retirement. It is available online, via the telephone and face to face.

As of 6 April – the date on which the new pension flexibilities commenced – Pension Wise had handled more than 3,600 calls since the opening of the contact centre in late March. Nearly 1400 people had booked a telephone guidance appointment with the Pensions Advisory Service, while nearly 380 people had booked a face to face appointment with Citizens Advice. Citizens Advice does not provide Pension Wise guidance over the phone.

Information on Pension Wise service usage since 6 April will be published in due course.

Pension Wise recommends that users take their time to prepare and gather relevant information before their guidance session, if they have not already done so by the time of booking their appointment; this can normally take around 2 weeks. The government estimates that, on average, face to face appointments take place within 9 days of booking.