Essentially Wealth – Quarter Two 2018

Planning for retirement and the need for laterlife care are becoming the decade’s most talked-about areas of social policy. In the UK we are seeing a major shift in emphasis; financial provision for our retirement years is moving from being the responsibility of the state, to being the responsibility of the individual.

It’s estimated that up to 17 million people1 are finding themselves part of what’s come to be known as the ‘sandwich generation’ – those who are looking after the needs of children and ageing parents.

Intergenerational fairness is never far from the news headlines these days. The issues are becoming widely known and frequently debated. The Equality and Human Rights Commission recently published a review which stated that today’s young people are suffering the “worst economic prospects for several generations”.

Overall, the stock market has been generous over the course of the past eight years or so. This optimism continued into 2018, with further strong gains seeing equity indices around the world soar.

The Treasury has forecast that it will receive an additional £5.1bn in tax by April 2019 as a result of the pension legislation introduced in 2015.