Barriers to pension reforms: Simply announcing changes will not unlock a growth revolution, says ALEX BRUMMER

There is very little of the Conservative economic heritage that has been appreciated by the Chancellor.

Rachel Reeves has tried to destroy it with her false accusation of having the worst public finances since World War II and the discovery of highly controversial black holes.

It will therefore be a pleasant surprise to hear the Chancellor at Mansion House tonight taking up the baton from her predecessor Jeremy Hunt on pension fund reforms.

Following an interim review by her colleague Emma Reynolds, the Chancellor will unveil a plan designed to unleash more investment in Britain’s ailing infrastructure, local communities and, hopefully, technology, IT and pharmaceutical start-ups. Great Britain.

At the heart of the Chancellor’s plan are two big changes. Britain’s diverse set of 86 local authority schemes will be merged into mega funds.

There will be a similar approach for assets in smaller defined contribution plans.

All of this is designed to unlock £80bn of new cash investments.

The Chancellor seeks to emulate the adventurism of the Australian and Canadian mega funds, which are major investors in Britain.

The Government intends to begin work on merging funds next year with a new pensions bill.

There is no doubt that the structure of unspent British funds needs to be reformed. But simply announcing the changes will not suddenly trigger a growth revolution.

The fundamental difficulties need to be addressed. Years of safety-first policies have imposed overzealous regulation on the sector and eliminated adventurous approaches, replacing it with heavy exposure to the gold market.

Only asset managers with vision (former Legal & General CEO Nigel Wilson springs to mind) have demonstrated the willpower to overcome barriers and build student accommodation and science parks.

In Australia, the origins of the superannuation fund, known as Aussie Super, date back more than three decades, to 1992. The trick to its success as an investor has been gaining consumer acceptance.

My own family members in Australia look forward to regularly receiving personalized statements from Super, showing the value of their investments and providing granular details.

This is similar to the way many Americans think about their 401K self-investment plans, which give them a direct line to S&P 500 stocks.

Reform requires a cultural change both at the “we know best” level of asset management and among consumers.

The involvement of Deputy First Minister Angela Rayner, who supports the idea that 5 per cent of local authority cash will go to communities, favors the idea of ​​state obligation.

What is needed are policies that embrace citizen capitalism and the best of British research and development, technology and the pharmaceutical industry. Despite the Chancellor’s well-intentioned enthusiasm, a pension-led growth surge is a long way off.

Save your energy

Cop29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, is so far from any greening of the economy that it can be safely ignored.

Progress is most easily measured through the power sector’s self-help. In the UK, outgoing SSE CEO Alistair Phillips-Davies is proving that sustained investment in renewables, alongside traditional power generation, can deliver big returns.

A big driver of the 26.4 per cent rise in profits to £714.5 million in the six months to September was the renewables arm, where profits quadrupled.

The SSE has shown investors that its £20bn plan to invest in green generation over five years can deliver benefits.

In contrast, one of the largest British generators, Germany’s RWE, is to reduce planned investments of £46 billion in renewable energy in response to Donald Trump’s “drill babies” policy.

Shell and BP follow practically the same course. Message to climate change fanatic and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband: there is a middle way.

Roger Wilko

Good retail concepts never die. Wilko is back strong with an opening in Uxbridge.

This is the seventh such store since Chris Dawson bought the bankrupt chain. The businessman went from a market stall to creating The Range chain and is giving Wilko back its rightful place in shopping centres.

It has an online tie-up with THG and Dawson has reportedly reviewed Homebase as a buy. Company reigns.