Written question asked by Lord Hammond of Runnymede (Conservative) on Tuesday, 19 December 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 8 January 2007. It was answered by James Purnell (Labour) on Monday, 5 February 2007 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Personal Accounts

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the White Paper ““Personal Accounts: a new way to save””, what assumptions were made in estimating that approximately 60 per cent. of money saved in personal accounts will be new saving.

Answer: The estimate that approximately 60 per cent. of money saved in personal accounts will be new saving is based on the results of a literature survey carried out for DWP.The 60 per cent. is the middle point of a range of 50-70 per cent. that was put forward in the report as a plausible assumption for the average level of new savings in NPSS or similar personal account schemes.It is this range that is used in the White Paper and the accompanying regulatory impact assessment, which note that personal accounts would generate pension savings of £7-8 billion per year, of which approximately £4-5 billion are expected to be additional.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 456 c662W;456 c664W; 113569
Session: 2006-07
Related items: Personal accounts: a new way to save. Report in 3 volumes including executive summary and Regulatory Impact Assessment.
Tuesday, 12 December 2006
Command papers
House of Commons
Subjects: Personal savings
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk