On Monday 28 November 2016, ILC-UK held a private, invitation only roundtable lunch discussion on the pensions and savings challenges facing consumers in the UK, and around the world. The roundtable was attended by Pensions Minister Richard Harrington MP, and was limited to fifteen high‐level participants; the meeting operated under the Chatham House Rule.

The saving for retirement challenge is both local and global. Rising life expectancy is going to put pressure on pensions systems around the world, making it harder for governments to fund PAYG systems and more important that individuals make private savings in order to fund retirement.

A major new project, The Global and Local Savings Challenge: Perceptions Vs Reality will feature new survey data from the UK, US and Asia to present a picture of perceived readiness and expectations for retirements internationally. The data, presented and discussed by ILC-UK at the roundtable, includes analysis of global trends in savings rates, the impact on the economy, and the inequalities between the generations.

The final report, to be launched in the New Year after including input from the roundtable, will also conduct original analysis to determine the ability of pensions systems around the world to support incomes in retirement; this will show whether more optimistic countries and regions are justified in their optimism, or whether there is a significant disconnect between expectations. The report, for which we thank Prudential plc for their support, will also examine retirement readiness by UK region.

During this roundtable discussion with pensions and savings experts, participants discussed how best public policy, and the financial services industry can work together to solve the savings challenges facing consumers today, and what the UK can learn from international pensions systems and savings practices.