One Behaviour, choice, and British pension policy
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Gordon L. Clark
Abstract
Over the past decade, the British pension system has been turned upside-down. Once lauded as a viable, long-term mix of public and private institutions, each element has been challenged as to its efficacy. Notably, private sector occupational pensions have been discounted by employers, just as ‘mis-selling’ scandals in the financial service sector have eroded trust in long-term savings products. Lord Turner’s model for the future was influenced by the behavioural revolution in cognitive science and behavioural psychology. In this paper, the key elements of the behavioural revolution are identified and linked to new forms of British occupational pension saving. While supportive of this research programme, there remain significant shortcomings. The penultimate section of the paper shifts attention to the Chancellor’s budget announcement prior to the 2015 general election providing individuals access to their retirement savings. In conclusion, implications are drawn for understanding the future of the structured-choice pension policy regime.
Abstract
Over the past decade, the British pension system has been turned upside-down. Once lauded as a viable, long-term mix of public and private institutions, each element has been challenged as to its efficacy. Notably, private sector occupational pensions have been discounted by employers, just as ‘mis-selling’ scandals in the financial service sector have eroded trust in long-term savings products. Lord Turner’s model for the future was influenced by the behavioural revolution in cognitive science and behavioural psychology. In this paper, the key elements of the behavioural revolution are identified and linked to new forms of British occupational pension saving. While supportive of this research programme, there remain significant shortcomings. The penultimate section of the paper shifts attention to the Chancellor’s budget announcement prior to the 2015 general election providing individuals access to their retirement savings. In conclusion, implications are drawn for understanding the future of the structured-choice pension policy regime.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- Notes on contributors v
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Continuities and change in UK social policy
- Behaviour, choice, and British pension policy 3
- Coalition health policy: a game of two halves or the final whistle for the NHS? 23
- Citizenship, conduct and conditionality: sanction and support in the 21st-century UK welfare state 41
- Housing policy in the austerity age and beyond 63
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Contributions from the Social Policy Association Conference 2015
- ‘Progressive’ neo-liberal conservatism and the welfare state: incremental reform or long-term destruction? 89
- Exploring out-of-work benefit claimants’ attitudes towards welfare reform and conditionality 105
- The Troubled Families Programme: in, for and against the state? 127
- What counts as ‘counter-conduct’? A governmental analysis of resistance in the face of compulsory community care 147
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Individualised budgets in social policy
- Social insurance for individualized disability support: implementing the Australian National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) 173
- Right time, right place? The experiences of rough sleepers and practitioners in the receipt and delivery of personalised budgets 191
- Personal health budgets: implementation and outcomes 211
- Personalised care funding in Norway: a case of gradual co-production 233
- Individualised funding for older people and the ethic of care 251
- Index 269
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- Notes on contributors v
-
Continuities and change in UK social policy
- Behaviour, choice, and British pension policy 3
- Coalition health policy: a game of two halves or the final whistle for the NHS? 23
- Citizenship, conduct and conditionality: sanction and support in the 21st-century UK welfare state 41
- Housing policy in the austerity age and beyond 63
-
Contributions from the Social Policy Association Conference 2015
- ‘Progressive’ neo-liberal conservatism and the welfare state: incremental reform or long-term destruction? 89
- Exploring out-of-work benefit claimants’ attitudes towards welfare reform and conditionality 105
- The Troubled Families Programme: in, for and against the state? 127
- What counts as ‘counter-conduct’? A governmental analysis of resistance in the face of compulsory community care 147
-
Individualised budgets in social policy
- Social insurance for individualized disability support: implementing the Australian National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) 173
- Right time, right place? The experiences of rough sleepers and practitioners in the receipt and delivery of personalised budgets 191
- Personal health budgets: implementation and outcomes 211
- Personalised care funding in Norway: a case of gradual co-production 233
- Individualised funding for older people and the ethic of care 251
- Index 269
