Five questions the UK’s autumn statement needs to answer
By Kirsten Hastings, 9 Sep 16
With a date of 23 November now set for chancellor Philip Hammond’s first autumn statement, AJ Bell senior analyst Tom Selby has outlined five questions Hammond needs to answer when he takes to the despatch box.
Auto-enrolment has been widely heralded a success, with opt-out rates far lower than many feared. But we are now getting to crunch time for the reforms as the UK’s smallest businesses are caught by the reforms and minimum contributions ramp up.
The government has already delayed auto-enrolment for small firms once before and, if the effects of Brexit are as dire as some fear, policymakers may be forced to weigh up the benefits of boosting savings rates with the costs and administrative burden auto-enrolment places on the businesses driving economic growth.
