Pensions have never enjoyed so much time in the spotlight. Regulatory overhauls, demands from campaign groups and proposals from the new Coalition Government have combined to ensure that the sector has often made headlines. A vision for reforming the state pensions system was unveiled in June by Iain Duncan Smith, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, who said everyone needed to take responsibility for achieving the income in retirement to which they aspire.

The liabilities faced by defined benefit pension schemes soared to a record high during August as market conditions continued to deteriorate, according to Aon Consulting.

Employers are set to slash pension benefits to staff as a consequence of being forced to enrol millions of new employees into company schemes, a report warns today.

Workers at the pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca will stage a series of strikes next month in a row over pensions.

Picture the scene: you walk into work, switch on the computer and find an
email from your employer telling you the occupational pension scheme you
have been saving into for a number of years will be shut imminently and your
money will be transferred to a scheme you know nothing about. It’s a
discomforting scenario, but one that is happening to many workers as firms
try to reduce their administration costs by ditching their old pension
schemes and starting up a group self-invested personal pension (Sipp)
instead.