Crowdsourcing changes to UK law
Before the Labour government took power, company pension funds were given a tax break to allow a build up of capital that could be paid out to employees when they retire.
Labour scrapped this tax relief resulting in a reduction of collected pension funds by £5 billion a year. At the time, the rising stock market compensated for this.
However, today, due to changing economical conditions, we have lost around £100 billion over the last 12 years.
Many companies have spiralling pension deficits. British Airways recently reported a deficit of £3.7 billion, more than its asset value. A re-instatement of the tax relief would give companies a chance to rebuild their pension funds – at least until the market picks up again.