Welcome breathing space on pensions

The Budget went some way towards showing how pensions simplification will work in practice but the final shape of the legislation is still unknown

With some political wizardry and assistance from the National Audit Office, the Chancellor has finally dispelled suggestions that pensions tax simplification might turn out to be just a pipedream. In a masterstroke, the Budget statement accommodated both the concerns around a rushed implementation and, to some extent, the criticisms of the level of the lifetime allowance. We now know that A-day will be 6 April 2006, provided, of course, the next government, if of a different political persuasion, doesn't have a rethink. The lifetime allowance will start at £1.5m and rise in steps to £1.8m...