Speaking at a conference hosted at the ABI today Mary Francis, Director General of the Association of British Insurers, outlined how the Sandler Review and the financial services industry could work together to bridge the annual savings gap of £27 billion.

• We see five ingredients in any recipe for closing the savings gap:
  
  
• simpler rules for selling today’s modern products;
  
  
• getting employers more involved in helping people save - for instance, inviting financial advisers into offices and factories, and more employers contributing to employees’ pensions;
  
  
• more information for all of us about what we will get from the State in retirement, and clearer rules on how we can add to that without finding it clawed back in taxes;
  
  
• helping people to get basic information about how to save and where to seek more detailed advice;
  
  
• a more open debate about whether people will ever save enough for themselves, without stronger incentives or even compulsion.

“To close the £27 billion savings gap, everyone in the UK needs to save, on average, half as much again as now. That’s not impossible, and it’s the number one challenge for policy makers and the industry. In the last twelve months, we have seen a growing consensus on this point. Now we should see a common effort to provide the right solutions.”

Notes

1. Enquiries to:
   
   Leonie Edwards - 0207 216 7411 - 0771 284 1184 (mobile)
   
   Alan Leaman - 0207 216 7440 - 0795 7482 330 (mobile)
   
   Malcolm Tarling - 0207 216 7410 - 07776 147667 (mobile)
   
   Emma Grainge - 0207 216 7392 - 0771 284 1183 (mobile)
   
   
2. An ISDN line is available for broadcasts.