Call to hold off auto-enrolment
The government should hold off its auto-enrolment pension plan for two years, the Institute of Directors will argue today. The plan – which will force companies to automatically enrol workers in a pension scheme unless they actively opt-out – will hamper consumer spending and result in more wage freezes, the business group says. “If the government defers auto-enrolment at next week’s Autumn Statement, it will have done so before most businesses have even considered the impact of the new rules,” said the IoD’s Simon Walker. “A few months ago when we asked, one in five of our members did not even know the legislation was coming into effect from next year.” The IoD said the businesses should be able to join the scheme voluntarily, at first.