Three quarters of us have heard of Inheritance Tax and have an idea that it’s not nice and could swallow up, well, yes, our inheritance. But just as many have little clue about how it works, whether it’s a problem for them or what they can do about it. The ‘whether it’s a problem for them’ can, of course, work both ways, for the departing and the inheriting. The latter will more often than not, in my experience, find it difficult to raise the issue with parents or others, fearing they will appear money-grabbing – until it’s too late, either to plan or because it’s after the event. And, rather more shockingly, more than 40% don’t have wills. While having one might not solve an IHT problem, it can certainly help to avoid many others, both emotional and financial. Bottom line, I guess, is our very British reluctance to talk about both money and death. Which I can understand on a personal level; professionally, however, it’s our job to raise these thorny issues, which we should and will continue to do.
“Pensions minister: ‘we have created saving pots, but not a pension system’”
The OBR (Office of Budget Responsibility, as opposed to the OBI, often said to be housed in No.11) said this week that pensions were one of the biggest problems to be faced by this and future governments.
