Swindon firms are being urged to tell ministers what they think of the Government’s new Automatic Enrolment workplace pensions system ahead of it being rolled out to small firms.
Auto enrolment carries a legal requirement for employers to enroll qualifying staff into pension schemes, with starting dates depending on the size of the businesses
Larger companies have already been included but from this year there will be a huge spike of SMEs and micro-businesses legally obliged to take part.
North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson said the Government was keen to hear how the scheme is working.
Speaking to the Swindon branch of a national support group set up to help payroll professionals and employers get to grips with auto enrolment, he said the Government’s Work and Pensions Committee was reviewing the scheme and urged anybody involved in AE – including accountants, IFAs, payroll bureaus and employers – to give their views.
Mr Tomlinson, who praised the work of the Friends of Automatic Enrolment in the House of Commons, was invited to the meeting by Swindon group co-chair Nicki Goddard-Dady. Nicki is payroll manager for Swindon chartered accountants Banks BHG, which hosts the group’s meetings.
Mr Tomlinson said: “So far 75,000 firms have enrolled but there are 1.8m SMEs and micro-businesses which will be drawn in over the next two years, and we know this will be a challenge.
“The work Friends of Automatic Enrolment is doing is very important. Government is listening, and wants to hear collective evidence about how the system is working, to see if any changes need to be made.”
He said pensions minister Baroness Altmann wanted to hear first hand what people thought about auto enrolment.
Friends of Automatic Enrolment national founder Andy Agathangelou, who also attended the meeting hosted by Banks BHG, said: “2016 is a massive year for automatic enrolment, as thousands of SMEs and micro business will be included.”
“Automatic enrolment has been a success but, as more companies are drawn in, there is a concern about how busy company owners will find the resources to deal with the legislation, and there is a fear that there will be an increasing amount of non-compliance.
“We all need to work together to make auto enrolment succeed, because if we can, we’ll have made a huge dent in the pensions crisis.”
The next Swindon Friends of AE meeting will be on April 12. For more information, email Nicki Goddard-Dady on nicki.goddard-dady@p-hr-s.co.uk.
Pictured: North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson speaking at the Swindon Friends of Automatic Enrolment meeting, top, and with group co-chairs Alan Jones and Nicki Goddard-Dady and Andy Agathangelou
