Review of international pension reform
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) commissioned this review of international pension schemes and pension reform to draw together evidence, potential learning points and areas of distinction between the UK and comparator countries, to inform implementation of the Government’s workplace pension reforms.
The review focused mainly on the introduction and implementation of workplace pension reforms that aimed to encourage private pension saving among individuals of working age. It centred on eight case study countries, all but one of which had instituted pension reforms that were similar in some respect to the proposed reforms in the UK. The review comprised a rapid evidence assessment and telephone interviews with pension experts in the case study countries.
The main gaps in knowledge highlighted by the review seem to be around attitudes to pension reform, pre and post-implementation; the effectiveness of incentives to encourage voluntary employee contributions above and beyond any minimum requirement; the outcome of pension reforms and pension schemes on incomes and living standards in retirement (although this may improve over time); and the wider macro-economic impacts of pension reform, such as the effect on aggregate savings levels, labour market impacts and the impact on small businesses. With the exception of New Zealand, there is a dearth of robust evaluation of pension reform in the case study countries we looked at.