The Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) said replacing the state pension with a “citizen’s pension” would help tackle inequality and national insurance company
.

The change would see pensions being calculated on length of residency in the UK rather than National Insurance (NI) contributions.

Reform could reduce poverty by aiding people with broken employment records.

Compulsion

The PPI added that once the state system was reformed the government should look at options to overhaul private and workplace pensions.

The think tank’s proposals were made in response to the recent national flood insurance program
of the Pensions Commission’s initial report into UK retirement savings.

According to the Pensions Commission’s report 12 million working people are not saving enough for their retirement.

As a result, living standards could fall for the next generation of UK pensioners.

The report added that a national benefit life insurance company
of higher taxes, higher savings and/or a higher average retirement age was needed to solve the UK pension crisis.

In the first of a two-part Money Programme special, reporter Michael Robinson reveals what’s gone wrong with Britain’s once world-renowned pension system.

Trevor Matthews, chief executive of pensions at Standard Life, is one of those concerned about what the future holds.

“The prospect is that this generation is not going to enjoy the dignity in national health insurance scheme
that they deserve, they are not going to enjoy a good quality of life in retirement, they’re going to be worrying about every pound they spend,” he said.

At 79.60 a week, Britain’s state pension is one of the lowest in the developed world. For many people, it is just too low to live on, national life insurance company if you don’t even get the full amount.

Rosemarie Brierley, who is 67, gets just 50.22 a week from the state, so despite reaching retirement age, she has to keep on working to make ends meet.

She doesn’t qualify for the full basic state pension of 79.60 because she took time out of the workplace to bring up a family.

To qualify for the full amount, women need to pay National Insurance contributions for 39 years, men for 44 years.

Half of British women don’t qualify for the full basic state pension and Rosemarie thinks this is wrong.

“I worked as hard as any man in this country but differently, I think it’s a scandal, it’s worse than a scandal it’s american national insurance co,” she said.

‘Disgrace’

In 1999, the New Labour government brought in a system of a means tested top-up to the basic state pension, aimed at helping people like Rosemarie who don’t get enough to live on.

Los Albertos’ band members are living for the moment

This can take the basic state pension up to 105 a week for a single person.

But if you have private savings, or income from a private pension, you may not qualify for this and that is Rosemarie’s problem.

She has a small nest egg of 35,000 which she has put away for a rainy day.

This means she doesn’t qualify for much of the top up - only a few pounds a week, and she regrets saving.

“I did save, but it hasn’t done me a bit of good. If I hadn’t saved I’d now have a 105 pounds a week instead of 50.22 a week.”

Difficult choice

One possible fix for the problems can be found on the other side of the world, in New Zealand, where everybody gets a flat rate state pension, based on residence, not contributions and with no means testing.

Tim Herman is not saving for his retirement

But even if all the problems with the state pension system are resolved, there are still a host of pitfalls in the world of private pensions.

The whole system is incredibly complicated. Martin Andrews and his girlfriend Sarah Draper are about to get married and are thinking about getting a pension together in the future, but Sarah doesn’t know where to begin.

“I can’t begin to imagine what kind of pension to choose for the future and what money I’ll need,” she said.

“The government’s not all that clear on it, so how the hell should we know?”

And when they do manage to decide, they’re faced with a whole range of obstacles to getting a good pension at the end of it.

Tough

Charges levied on pension funds by providers over a 30 year period can have a dramatic effect on the size of an lincoln national life insurance company
savings.

Pensions expert Dr Ros Altmann has concerns about it.

The charging structure of private pensions is one of the biggest problems that we have to deal with, because you will lose a huge proportion of your capital over the longer term. You can lose up to a third of your capital over 30 years.

Dr Altmann and Mr Robinson bring shocking news

So to encourage us to save more into pension funds, the government spends billions of pounds a year through tax relief.

But most of this ends up subsidising the richest in the land, while offering only modest national health insurance plan
to the majority of us who need to save the most.

But the toughest thing of all for pension savers is knowing just how much to put away to get a decent pension.

“If you want 10,000 every year, you will need to save around 200,000,” said Ms Altmann.

“So if you want a 20,000 a year pension, somehow from your savings you’ve got to get an amount of about 400,000.”

Not easy for the vast majority of us. So this leaves a stark choice.

We can either rely on a low state pension in retirement, try to stretch to saving several hundred pounds a month into a personal pension or face working long into retirement to deliver an extra income.

Pensions Panic: Any Way Out? will be broadcast on BBC Two on Friday 11 March at 1900.

So far, 63,000 has been paid to six companies, saving 234 workers from being laid off.

The government has said a total of 40m in grants would be made available to support businesses who supplied Rover.

There was more bad news for Rover on Thursday after its cars did badly in a league table of driver national interstate insurance company
.

Rover was ranked 28th out of 32 car manufacturers in a survey of 20,000 car owners carried out by market company insurance integon national
company JD Power and What Car? magazine.

Only Land Rover, Peugeot, Fiat and Alfa Romeo came below Rover. Top of the table were Lexus, Skoda and Honda.

Staying alive

We know of firms where 85% of their business is supplying Rover… it’s hard for them to see a future John Edwards, chief executive of Advantage West Midlands Rover user satisfaction low

While the task force payments may have saved jobs for the time being at the six firms, other suppliers are still warning that they may have to lay off workers.

John Edwards, a member of the task force and chief executive of Advantage West Midlands, said that helping companies which are heavily dependent on Rover for most of their work could be more difficult than helping those which are more diversified.

“We have to target those companies, which with some support, can survive,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“We know of firms where 85% of their business is supplying Rover. In these circumstances, it is hard for them to see a future for themselves.

“We are talking to government about (the possibility of) deferring VAT and National Insurance payments… but it is very difficult.”

Moving forward

According to Advantage West Midlands, some of the 40m available for grants could be used to assist residents near Longbridge who are affected by the problems there - for example, shops that serve Rover workers.

Separately, The Times newspaper reported that the government has set aside 25m to keep MG Rover afloat if Shanghai Automotive Industry National western life insurance company (SAIC) resumes talks about investing in the cash-strapped car firm.

The extra government funds could keep the troubled car firm going until the election on 5 May, the newspaper said. The government has already offered a 6.5m loan to keep Rover going this week.

The DTI said that talk of a further 25m was “pure national fire insurance company.” But it added that it would be meeting later this week to consider future funding requirements.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, the administrator for MG Rover, is said to want to put forward a new plan to SAIC, but doubts remain over how enthusiastic the Chinese firm will be to revive the deal.

It will cut 230 jobs in Coventry and 50 in Shrewsbury, as “a direct consequence of the probable demise of MG Rover”.

A task force set up to help suppliers of MG Rover made payouts of 63,000 to six suppliers earlier on Thursday, saving 234 staff from redundancy.

There was more bad news for Rover on Thursday after its cars did badly in a league table of driver satisfaction.

Rover was ranked 28th out of 32 car manufacturers in a survey of 20,000 car owners carried out by market information company JD Power and What Car? magazine.

Only Land Rover, Peugeot, Fiat and Alfa Romeo came below Rover. Top of the table were Lexus, Skoda and Honda.

Staying alive

Stadco made the body for the MG TF and body panels for the Rover 25, 45 and 75. It employs just under 1,500 people in the UK, 450 of which are based in Coventry.

The firm said it had started the national life and accident insurance company
process involved in making 280 staff redundant.

The government has said a total of 40m in grants would be made available to support businesses who supplied Rover.

We know of firms where 85% of their business is supplying Rover… it’s hard for them to see a future John Edwards, chief executive of Advantage West Midlands Rover user satisfaction low

But John Edwards, a member of the task force and chief executive of Advantage West Midlands, said that helping companies which are heavily dependent on Rover for most of their work could be more difficult than helping those which are more diversified.

“We have to target those companies, which with some support, can survive,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“We know of firms where 85% of their business is supplying Rover. In these circumstances, it is hard for them to see a future for themselves.

“We are talking to government about (the possibility of) deferring VAT and National Insurance payments… but it is very difficult.”

Moving forward

CRUELLEST MONTH April 2: Government offers 100m bridging loan if SAIC does deal April 4: Talks with SAIC stall April 7: Government says Rover in administration April 8: Rover goes into administration April 10: Government offers 6.5m to keep Rover going for a week April 12: “Phoenix Four” pledge 49m April 13: Rover task force’s first payout

According to Advantage West Midlands, some of the 40m available for grants could be used to assist residents near Longbridge who are affected by the problems there - for example, shops that serve Rover workers.

Separately, The Times newspaper reported that the government has set aside 25m to keep MG Rover afloat if Shanghai Automotive Industry American national life insurance
(SAIC) resumes talks about investing in the cash-strapped car firm.

The extra government funds could keep the troubled car firm going until the election on 5 May, the newspaper said. The government has already offered a 6.5m loan to keep Rover going this week.

The DTI said that talk of a further 25m was “pure speculation.” But it added that it would be meeting later this week to consider future funding requirements.

Security national insurance company
, the national insurance
for MG Rover, is said to want to put forward a new plan to SAIC, but doubts remain over how federated national insurance
the Chinese firm will be to revive the deal.

The Paxman Interviews do exactly what the title says.

There are no audiences, no phone-ins, no sofa, no young Ant and Dec. Just Jeremy Paxman doing what he does best with each of the party leaders in turn, in three Federated national insurance company
specials.

The half-hour interviews will run at 1930 BST on BBC One, with another chance to see the best bits on Newsnight in its normal slot on BBC Two at 2230 BST.

Ohio national life insurance
questions

First up on Monday, 18 April is the Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy.

With a new baby less than a week old and a manifesto launch he would rather forget, Mr Kennedy needs a national health insurance plan
outing to get his campaign back on track.

The Prime Minister Tony Blair follows on Wednesday, 20 April.

In the corresponding fixture ahead of the last general election the prime minister famously told Paxman that voters should not assume that National Insurance contributions would go up if Labour won.

They did, and we expect Paxman will want to know why.

Last, but possibly most anticipated of all, will be the interview with the Conservative leader Michael Howard on Friday, 22 April.

Jeremy Paxman’s 1997 encounter with Mr Howard, then a candidate in the Tory leadership contest, was easily voted the viewers’ favourite moment in 25 years of Newsnight earlier this year.

We do not need to explain why. What will happen this time?

The Paxman Interviews will be broadcast on Monday 18, Wednesday 20 and Friday 22 April 2005 at 1930 BST on BBC One.

You can also watch the interviews live and on demand from the BBC News Website.

He told BBC Newsnight’s Jeremy Paxman people had to make their own judgement but he took the decision he had to.

“If you want me to apologise for the war in Iraq, I’m afraid I cannot say that I’m sorry we removed Saddam Hussein,” the Labour leader said.

During a 30-minute grilling he also said he did not know how many failed asylum seekers there were in the UK.

Despite repeated questioning, he declined to give an estimate.

Proper controls

He said the national health insurance program
measures on asylum meant the numbers applying were falling, the backlog of cases was lower and more failed asylum seekers were being removed.

“For the very reason that the previous government gave, you cannot determine liberty national life insurance company
how many people are here illegally,” he said.

“The only long term way of dealing with this issue, however, is to introduce proper controls at borders through an electronic visa regime and identity cards.”

I had to take the decision as prime minister that I thought was right for the country and I did so Tony Blair Blair defends his record Newsnight interview

He rejected the Tory proposal to set an upper limit on economic migrants as having the potential to cause “tremendous damage” to the economy by denying businesses the workers they needed.

Pressed over the government’s use of intelligence in the build-up to the war, Mr Blair insisted the government had been vindicated by four separate inquiries.

He said going to war in Iraq had been a “hard decision” taken for the right reasons.

“You can go through these issues about my integrity, my character, the legal advice… or you can accept that in the end a decision had to be taken.

‘Great partnership’

“There was no middle way, there was no fence to sit on. I took that decision.

“Now I know people strongly disagreed with it. I’m sorry. In the end I had to take the decision as prime minister that I thought was right for the country and I did so.”

Asked if he would replace Britain’s ageing nuclear deterrent, Mr Blair said he believed it was needed by the country, but said it was a decision for the future.

Tony Blair denied having made a deal with Chancellor Gordon Brown

Ohio national life insurance
on whether Labour would raise taxes, he said the party’s spending proposals “are adequately catered for by the tax plans that we’ve got”.

Mr Blair defended the 1% rise in National Insurance during the previous Parliament as necessary for investment in the NHS.

He did not agree with the local income tax proposed by the Lib Dems but did feel council tax should be reformed, he said.

Mr Blair denied having made a deal with Chancellor Gordon Brown to stand down after the election but stressed that they had a “great partnership”.

He restated his intention to serve a full third term if national association of insurance, saying the job of prime minister was still full of challenges.

“I still think we’ve got things to do. The irony of this job is you are less popular as time goes on but in some ways better equipped to do the job,” he said.

“There’s masses for me to do and that’s what gets you up in the morning.”

*Tony Blair will appear on The Paxman Interviews on Wednesday at 1930 BST on BBC One. You can also watch the interviews live by clicking on the election news in video button at the top of all BBC News website election stories.

Watson Wyatt said the rebate offered to firms for contracting out should rise in 2007 by as much as 50%.

It claims the need for higher rebates is the result of inadequate investment returns and of people living longer.

According to official figures, the government paid out 3.1bn to company schemes and their members in 2004/05.

Security national insurance payments’

The system of reduced National Insurance Payments for company schemes and their members was first devised in 1978 by the then Labour government.

It was introduced in parallel with a top-up pension scheme called the State Earnings Related Pensions Scheme (SERPS).

This has since been renamed the state second pension (S2P).

The idea was that people would be better off in the long term if they relied less on state provision and more on the investment returns that underpin the income from personal and company pensions.

According to Watson Wyatt, the value of the reduced NI payments for companies and their staff is simply inadequate to midwest national health insurance
for no longer being in S2P.

“The main reason that the current rebates are inadequate is that they assume that pension schemes can earn a higher investment return than can be guaranteed,” said Nigel Bodie, a senior consultant at Watson Wyatt.

“In addition we know that people are expected to live several years longer once they retire.”

Personal responsibility

The National auto insurance
government expanded the concept of NI rebates in 1988 and let employees who were not in a company pension scheme also take rebates from their NI national heritage insurance company
if they then invested the money in a personal pension.

The government thought it would be a good idea if more people took direct responsibility for their pension provision instead of relying on what would always be a rather meagre level of state benefit.

Since then the idea has come under considerable criticism.

Earlier this month the Financial Services Authority concluded that many people who have contracted out of the S2P in favour of their personal pension would lose money as a result.

The Government’s actuary department will soon be consulting on the level of rebates which should apply to company schemes and individuals who contract out between 2007 and 2012.