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Pensions Bill

moved Amendment No. 9: 9: Clause 3, page 2, line 22, at end insert ““provided that, in the case of a person who has reached the age of 50, the jobholder must first have been offered face to face pensions and debt advice, consisting of at least one hour of generic financial advice received in an individual personal interview from a trained adviser in the parliamentary constituency where the jobholder has their main place of residence or employment”” The noble Baroness said: In our debate on Second Reading, six speakers emphasised the importance of good quality generic advice being available for employees who may want to opt out of auto-enrolment. The Minister, using the broadest of brushes, said that individuals who are auto-enrolled would need accurate information, but will not ““routinely need extensive advice”” because of the employer contribution. This amendment is not designed for the majority of employees who will be auto-enrolled, but for those aged 50 and over for whom auto-enrolment might not be suitable because of the interactions with means-tested benefits. The amendment calls for the sort of advice that could be provided by CABs. Interestingly, Citizens Advice is piloting a generic financial advice project, and its interim report shows that pensions advice is at the top of its list of ““most frequently raised issues””, with 49 per cent of the clients in this project being over the age of 50. I gather from the Minister’s office that the Government’s proposals on a national money guidance service, which he mentioned in his winding-up speech at Second Reading, are due to be published in a month or two, presumably based on the Thoresen review. I would be glad to hear whether they are likely to give us any comfort. The Pensions Policy Institute, whose research is invaluable, does not appear to agree with the Government that advice is not necessary. Its analysis of auto-enrolment implies that, "““people will need very clear information and generic advice to help them make informed decisions about whether they should stay in or opt out of personal accounts””." It goes on to say that: "““Designing information and generic advice in a simple and easy to understand way to help people decide whether or not to opt out will be””—" I quote again— "““an important test of the personal accounts policy””." Help the Aged goes further in saying that such financial information and guidance is vital to the success of personal accounts, while Age Concern says that access is essential. The Minister has quoted these groups approvingly as being part of the consensus around auto-enrolment and personal accounts. I urge the Government not to cherry pick their comments and to take on board their clear call for such generic advice to be made available. I beg to move.