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NAPF insists workplace pensions are safe
27 August 2008 11:00
The National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) has denied that Britain's workplace pension schemes are in trouble and advised employees to continue saving into them.
A recent report by acturial firm Lane Clarke and Peacock revealed that the UK pension funds of the FTSE 100 had slipped into a £41 billion deficit in July, compared to a £12 billion surplus 12 months previously, the biggest swing recorded in five years.
However, NAPF senior policy adviser Michelle Lewis has played down this data, stating that many schemes are still in surplus and that pension funds have generally been cutting their level of investment in equities, softening the blow of the overall slide into deficit.
She asserted that existing fund members should be unaffected by this fall, although some firms may seek to increase their level of investment in their schemes, while reviewing the type of pensions they offer their staff in the long-term.
Yet Ms Lewis concluded that company pensions remain vital to anyone who wants to enjoy a healthy standard of living in retirement, enabling them to benefit from employer contributions, as well as from tax relief on their own.
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