Monday 30 November 2020

Is it 3.2 million or 2.6 million?

From a PR email -

3.2 million Gen Xers' retirement savings disrupted by The Thing and many more at risk of facing financial hardship in retirement, new report finds.

Or ...

2.6 million Gen Xers' retirement savings disrupted by The Thing and many more at risk of facing financial hardship in retirement, new report finds.

So, er ... 'I think it's nice that they've given you a choice, boss.' Shut up, idiot! I WANT THE FACTS - !!!

'Ha, ha, ha! Why do you want the facts?'

Oh, no particular reason.

Anyway ...

At least 1 in 3, or nearly 4.3 million Gen Xers, are set to reach retirement with minimal retirement incomes, new research finds.

The Thing has left 1.6 million Gen Xers on furlough, around 1.3 million with reduced hours and just over half a million made redundant.

Over half (57%) of Gen Xers who are yet to retire want to save more for retirement but are struggling to do so, with 7.9 million (61%) unable to afford to save more or prioritizing paying off debts and almost 3.8 million (29%) overwhelmed with other pressures and priorities.

New research by the International Longevity Centre UK (ILC), supported by Phoenix Group, finds that 1 in 3 Gen Xers will face a grave reality of retiring without adequate levels of pension provision, if policymakers fail to respond urgently to support this generation set to retire over the next 10-30 years.

I'm not bothered, me. I mean, if I don't make it as a rock star, well ...

The International Longevity Centre? 'Christ.' Yeah.

Listen! It's not how long you live, man, it's how deep you live, you dig?

What do you feel? What do you learn? How big does your consciousness become? How much love do you get from the cosmos?

Or am I talking to zombies?

Anyway, there's a lot of this email, but life is too short. 'Ha!' Let's go straight to the voices ...

LC Director David Sinclair argues: "From a retirement income perspective, many Gen Xers are, frankly, screwed. Too many are sleepwalking into a retirement where they won't have an adequate income to meet their aspirations."

They can always jump into the sea, son. 'Like Bodhi.' Yes, Voice. Or they can man up, like Walker.

I watched Point Blank again yesterday. I doubt that Walker had a pension or savings. That's one of the reasons* why he wanted the $93,000 so badly. 'And he was prepared to do anything to get it.' Of course he was!

*The main reason though was ... honour. That money was stolen from him. So what if he has to tear down the whole Organization to get it back?!

Anyway, David continues ...

"And their situation has been made worse by The Thing."

"They haven't been able to save enough. Many Gen Xers aren't going to benefit from final salary pensions. And there is a sense of hopelessness about how they might turn things around."

"There is some good news however. Some people really do want to save more. They just don't see how they can do it. Government and industry must find a way to lever this willingness and ensure public policy better addresses the barriers too many are facing to saving."

Christ, Dave! Even if people do save more, governments will find a way to steal it all eventually. People are losing businesses now, and jobs, and savings. The corporations will own everyone!

Anyway, who's this?

Lord Hutton, Peer and former Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, comments: "The Turner Report helped to establish a national consensus around the need to encourage greater retirement saving. This report from the ILC has highlighted the fact that many people still find it very hard to save sufficient money to cover their retirement needs."

Yeah, yeah.

"We will need a very significant focus on Generation X as we consolidate the enormous progress we gave made since 2005 in establishing an effective and inclusive pension savings policy."

Okay. Jenny?

Jenny Holt, Managing Director Customer Savings & Investments, Phoenix Group says: "This is a clear call to action to help improve the future of Gen Xers. One in five of the UK population are Gen Xers and millions will face problems because of inadequate retirement savings if actions aren't taken to help them understand their current position and the options available to them."

"This is the generation that entered the job market too late to benefit from final salary pensions, yet too early to benefit from schemes such as auto-enrolment. The combination means that without appropriate intervention many Gen Xers are expected to face very significant challenges in retirement, and even pensioner poverty."

"Policymakers, industry and business need to work together to help this generation, including ensuring they have access to the right support - whether that's guidance or advice - when they need it. With The Thing impact putting additional strain on finances this need is even more urgent."

The right support? Just give me someone like Fairfax in Point Blank to point me in the right direction. I'll do the rest, Jenny.

Okay. That's enough.

Laters.