'Scottish breakaway will hit OAPs and make mockery of annuities'

Scottish independence could make "a mockery" of annuities and cause significant adverse affects for pensioners, an advisory firm fears. However, the campaign for independence insisted that there has been a lot of scaremongering regarding pensions. Portal Financial warned that pensions and private pensions with Scottish members will face increased costs, either from a forced move south to England where their majority customer base is or from increased costs associated with complying with a new regulatory regime. Jamie Smith-Thompson, managing director of Portal Financial, said: "If Scotland ceases to use the pound, for those who have already annuitized and are living off their income, the real value of that income could change dramatically due to FX movements; it could go up or down but either way it makes a mockery of the concept of the guaranteed nature of annuities."The UK pension regulations require businesses to base their operations in the country where most of their customers are. {desktop}{/desktop}{mobile}{/mobile} For many Scottish institutions including Scottish Life, Scottish Widows and the Bank of Scotland, this may mean moving some or all of their operations to England. Standard Life and RBS have revealed plans to transfer out of Scotland if voters say yes to independence.Mr Smith-Thompson said: "The whole currency issue will make guaranteed incomes hard to commit to due to movements in foreign exchange rates."Under a yes vote pension savers will be at the mercy of unpredictable exchange rates, and a new regulator and most likely different rules and increased costs that will have to be funded either by members or their scheme."Many schemes' rules would not allow the scheme to cover the cost of making a foreign exchange payment as it stands, he explained, and if it does, the additional costs would need to be borne by either the scheme, all of its members, or by the pensioner that is affected. The Yes campaign stated the following about pensions on its website: "The Scottish Government has made clear that accrued pension rights will continue to be honoured after independence. So state pensions will continue to be paid as before. "And so will public sector pensions – including civil service, armed forces, police, fire-fighters, NHS, universities, teachers and local government pensions. Some of these schemes are already administered by the Scottish Government. "There will be agreement between the Scottish and UK governments as to the exact share of pension liabilities to be taken on by the Scottish Government – but it has repeatedly been made clear that no accrued pension rights will be lost. Private pensions will continue to operate as before. The Scottish Government will ensure there are suitable protections in place for final salary occupational schemes." The SNP has said: "The reality is that pensions are more affordable in Scotland than in the rest of the UK, a view supported by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, who have also made clear that the demographic challenge is no more significant for Scotland than it is to the rest of the UK."We also know that insurance providers, including HSBC and the Department of Work and Pensions itself, are clear that pensions would be unaffected following a Yes vote."With independence we will be able to ensure a fair deal for pensioners, with a triple lock on the state pension to keep pace with the cost of living, a review of the pension age to ensure it is right for Scotland's pensioners and a fair approach to public sector pensions." The referendum takes place on September 18.

'Scottish breakaway will hit OAPs and make mockery of annuities'

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