---

Occupational Pensions

I am pleased to have been invited to contribute to the debate. Two words are particularly appropriate for it: ““hullabaloo? and ““hypocrisy?. ““Hullabaloo? is appropriate because we are debating a decision that was taken 10 years ago and on which there was complex and competing counsel. The following question must be asked: what will this debate do for good government and good public policy in the future? Instead of opening up the workings of government as a result of freedom of information legislation, might it encourage Ministers to seek only advice that supports the decision that they want to take? If all civil service advice is prepared with an eye to publication, objections to official policies will not be put in writing and will soon be completely suppressed. I believe that I have support on that point from the right hon. and learned Member for Rushcliffe (Mr. Clarke). It is an important point, which has not yet been raised in today’s debate. ““Hypocrisy? is also a relevant word. If we look at the past record, we find that the previous Conservative Government were making progressive steps towards reducing, if not abolishing, dividend tax credit. I will mention a few of them later. I have also looked at the general press commentary on this issue. John Ralfe is a pension expert and former finance head of Boots. He has said:"““Anyone who thinks we were living in a pensions nirvana before 1997 needs his head examined.?" He also said:"““I am not someone who habitually jumps to Brown’s defence, but the idea that everything is his fault is baloney.?" Yes, that idea is absolute baloney. Stephen Yeo is a senior consultant at Watson Wyatt. He advises the Conservative party, and he said that"““the cost of pensions has risen due to lower investment returns, the increased cost of security and greater longevity.?" The decision that we are discussing is not among his top three reasons for that rise in cost. The top three reasons are the rise of guaranteed benefits, poor investment returns and greater longevity. For example, today a 65-year-old man is on average expected to live for 20 years, as against 12 years in 1950. As a result there has been a revaluation of pension scheme liabilities, which has contributed to the current situation.