Is a Canada-style model a good idea for UK pensions?

Rachel Reeves has been extremely busy in the few weeks since she was appointed. Aside from discovering a 22bn black hole” in the public finances, she’s been to the G20 finance ministers’ summit in Rio de Janeiro and is now in Canada meeting the bosses of big pension funds.

- SEAN O'GRADY

She is exploring how a more consolidated “Canadian-style” model for the British pensions system could boost returns to those reaching retirement while, rather more controversially, funding more British investments such as infrastructure projects. Pensions rarely hit the headlines until something goes wrong, but these are potentially significant changes to people’s retirement savings, and there are questions...

What is Reeves up to?

Pension nationalism. She wants the country’s pension funds “to drive investment in homegrown businesses and deliver greater returns to pension savers”.

On the positive side, it’s fair to say that many smaller pension funds can suffer from high overheads and costs, and deliver disappointing returns for pensioners. So there is a case for consolidation to win economies of scale, both for “money purchase” or “defined contribution”, which are entirely dependent on financial markets; and for “defined benefit” or “final salary” schemes, linked to length of service, but also invested in financial markets.