The Treasury and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) are to go ahead with plans to develop a single public financial guidance body responsible for all debt advice, money and pensions guidance, rather than having two different bodies, one focused on pensions and the other on more general issues
The government says this will make it easier for consumers to get help on key financial matters, and is in response to concerns raised about its original plans for two separate guidance sources.
Earlier this year the government consulted on setting up a two body delivery model for government-sponsored guidance. This included replacing the Money Advice Service (MAS) with a new, streamlined, money guidance body, and bringing together the Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) and Pension Wise into a new, pension guidance body.
Simon Kirby, economic secretary to the Treasury, said: ‘We strongly believe that creating one public guidance body is the best way of making it as easy as possible for people to access the help they need to get their financial questions answered.’
The next steps will involve consulting on the best way to design a single body model, so legislation to create new public financial guidance bodies will not be included in the pensions schemes bill.
