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GregKingston

Listed below are comments made by GregKingston between Monday, 11th May 2009 and Thursday, 30th July 2009.

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BT: A blacker pension hole 10:19pm on 30 Jul 2009 56. At 8:35pm on 30 Jul 2009, Ackwern wrote:
...one of the guarantees sought from the government of the day to facilitate the privatisation was their ultimate acceptance of liability for the BT Pension Scheme.

Finally, someone speaks some sense, and Robert, it demonstrates a pretty shoddy lack of research or editorial oversight that this was not mentioned.

75% of pre 1984 pension liabilities are covered by a "Crown Guarantee" in the event of BT becoming insolvent.

Not covered are the 97,000 staff who joined between 1984 and 2001; 2001 was when the BT final salary scheme was closed to new staff. All these plans are covered by the PPF. The BBC itself even reported on this, back in April 2006 - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4937658.stm

There are some other inaccuracies quoted by some readers here, notably that people must annuitise their pension funds at the age of 75. This is not true. People can drawdown on their plan from the age of 55 (50 until April 2010) via unsecured income, and in doing so can draw an income up to 20% higher than prevailing Government Actuarial Department rates (close to annuity rates for normal health pensioners). Then, at age 75, they can switch to Alternatively Secured Pension, drawing a maximum of 10% below this rate (90% GAD). They can, if they wish, annuitise at any time.

This is commonly done via a SIPP - Self Invested Personal Pension. You can keep your pension savings out of the hands of an insurance company all your life if you wish, and choose the investments within it from a far broader choice than an insurer gives you, including commercial property.

Defined contribution schemes, such as SIPPs, are the future. More choice for the employee, known liabilities for the employer.

Final salary schemes for all public sector workers have to stop. Robert - why not do a piece on the value of Gordon Brown's pension pot value 1 day after he became Prime Minister? It runs into the millions just after the 1 day. Whatever you say about him, at least Fred Goodwin hung around a bit longer to get his. How about the Lord Chancellor? Or Speaker?

Whoever gets into power at the next election (and I hope this is sooner rather than later) needs to address this sort of injustice immediately.
The long and slow recovery of the UK economy 10:33am on 22 Jul 2009 Labour have taken this country back to the Bronze age. Let's hope there is an election soon before we continue back to the stone age.
Not just any mess, an M&S mess 1:57pm on 07 Jul 2009 Good on the LAPFF.

It would be extremely hypocrytical of us, having clamoured for years for the insitutional shareholders to flex their muscles on our behalf, to now turn around and say they shouldn't.

Rose knows his decision was unpopular, and institutional shareholders haven't exactly kept their disquiet behind closed doors. So why should this vote change it? It isn't a vote to say 'get out now', it is a vote to say 'we don't like the dual role, so get out next year'. There can still be an orderly succession, and there's no need for him to resign.

It also sends a message to other instutions as well as M&S, to make them think twice about repeating their behaviour.

If they don't put this vote forward and support it, then it is all about the short term again, not looking ahead long term. I thought that's what lots of people here were moaning about with regards to what has been happening in the City in the past few years...
Paternoster and what to expect of non-execs 09:16am on 01 Jul 2009 You say that the company has been forced to stop growing, or the FSA would itself have instructed this.

But why not also talk about the FSA requirement that financial firms must continue to grow, no matter what the ecnomic conditions. Smaller building societies are under huge FSA pressure to keep growing, but for what purpose and for what end result? The end result, as we have seen, can in some cases be failure, a huge contraction and a takeover.

There appears to be no place for organic growth, and an contraction appears to be completely unacceptable, even if it is just for a year and ensures the long term future and stability of a company.

The FSA continues to demonstrate that it cannot regulate effectively. It should be consigned to the role of checking and audting, whilst letting grown-ups in other organisations make the regulatory decisions.
Liverpool walks on 09:15am on 23 Jun 2009 Is this really the most important business story to blog about at the moment?

No mention of refinery workers? £1 trillion of public sector pension liabilities hanging around the private sector's neck? BA seemingly inches away from requiring government support? Banking fees decision in the Lords?

Apparently not. Instead a story about a club own by foreigners who's overpaid players kick a bag of wind around.
Hester's Royal remuneration 4:01pm on 22 Jun 2009 Profit isn't profit until it is realised.

It is one thing getting the share price to £0.70. It is entirely another to sell 70% of the company at that price or higher to realise it.

With Gordon Brown's track record on this matter a little suspect at best (announcing to the world that he was selling off our gold, and wondering why the price dropped) I don't hold out much more hope for this.
Goodwin: The final pension sum 4:42pm on 19 Jun 2009 The Daily Mash put this story a little better than Robert this time around I think.
MPs' tax muddle 11:26pm on 13 May 2009 There is something very wrong about the current news on 'expenses'.

MPs are supposed to be of the people for the people. Yet, when it comes out of the blue that they've been fiddling expenses, they can easily lay their hands on £40,000+ to pay back.

How many of their constituents can quickly find £40,000 cash to pay up a bill?

We are not being represented by our members of parliament, we are being governed. And the sooner this stops, the better.
Royal Mail and HMG's creative accounting 11:46pm on 11 May 2009 55. At 11:41pm on 11 May 2009, Dingdongalistic wrote:
"Maths certainly isn't your strong point then Bob!"

Actually, it's perfectly possible - if you round down, say from 20.4bn to 20bn, and round up from say 29.5 bn to 30 bn (which is perfectly mathematically acceptable), then the difference between the two would be 9.1 bn, which rounds down to 9 bn.

--------------------------------------------

It is partly due to that sort of accountancy that we are in the mess we are in today.

Do lots of rounding, and then gear up many times on that figures, sell it, gear again, re-sell it, rinse and repeat.
Speaker's anger 11:44pm on 11 May 2009 Any system where one can claim whatever they want, and which then allows (as voted for by them) the 'watchdog' to vet the claim and see exactly how much they can take is just plain wrong.

Don't bother with the reform now. Call an election. In the 6 weeks before voting they will all have their chance to state their apologies and what they propose to change the situation, and we can all vote accordingly.

Labour have run this country of some 60 million people for 12 years - for the benefit of just a few thousand. Whilst I have every desire to see them cast out so far they never return, make no mistake that their replacements cannot conceivably continue in the same manner.

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