
Pensions Goth loves to explain what’s going on in pensions, what Government, industry and regulators are up to and what changes might mean for members. Pensions Goth loves cats, heavy metal music and is passionate about the truth, data and making sense of pensions.
She also tweets as #Pensions_Goth and you can find her on blue sky at @pensionsgoth.bsky.social
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Welcome to Pensions Goth Blog
Insights, stories, commentary and thoughts on pensions policy and events.
Blog categories
- Adequacy
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Winter Fuel Payment: from quiet cuts to political football
When the Government announced it would restrict the Winter Fuel Payment (WFP) to pensioners on Pension Credit in 2024, it did so without any published impact assessment. A benefit that once reached nearly every pensioner, worth up to £300 a year, was removed from around 10 million people…
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Neglected government IT results in poorer pensioners
The state pension underpayment scandal, which has already affected over 130,000 people and could ultimately involve up to 400,000, would not have come to light without the persistence of former Pensions Minister, Sir Steve Webb. His work, supported by campaigners and advisers, has pushed the Government to acknowledge…
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Janette Weir on flex first/fix later
In this interview, I talk to the inspirational Janette Weir of Ignition House about the work that companies are doing on flex first/fix later products to meet the Government’s upcoming requirements for schemes to offer default retirement income products. You can read her report (sponsored by Aviva/Age UK)…
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Flying across the world, thinking about retirement: a reflection on pensions and globalisation
I’m writing this at around 17:30 UK time, but I’m actually on an airplane heading to Seattle, Washington, to attend my sister’s wedding. As always, travelling makes you think about how small the globe has become. I can get on a plane in London and ten hours later…
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Roof today – risk tomorrow: should we unlock pensions for housing?
By 2041 the proportion of retired home owners could fall from around 78% in 2023 to around 63%. An increase in retired renters is not necessarily a problem, but because of changes to the supply of housing stock, the proportion of privately renting pensioners will also increase from…
