Savings

UK Savings Market

Guide to Investing

Fidelity encourages individuals to save and has produced a Guide to Investing available ­here.

ISA

Since it was launched in 1999, replacing the Personal Equity Plan ( ), the has been hugely successful in encouraging people to save. The reports and assets under management at £90.1 billion[i].

Fidelity International worked closely with the Government in the initial consultation over the design of the . Since then we have continued to talk to the government about the various changes they have introduced to the regime. We believe that the has given thousands of savers an easy route into stock market investment and has been the most successful government initiative to encourage saving.

We broadly welcome the changes to the announced in 2006:

  • The has been extended indefinitely encouraging long-term saving for the foreseeable future;
  • An increase in the annual allowance to £7,200 is welcome, but we still believe further increase is desirable - this was the first since the was launched. The increase should at least keep pace with inflation;
  • Harmonisation of the management regulations for PEPs and ISAs is welcomed as it simplifies the administration of account management;
  • Keeping the structure unchanged: it is important that the overall structure of the remains the same. The saving public has become familiar with the and this has developed confidence and been a key component in its success. For the foreseeable future this remains the case.

Consumer Education

Fidelity strongly believes that knowledgeable consumers are good for our industry and good for the savings market as a whole. We thus welcome the efforts that the government and FSA have been making to improve the level of consumer knowledge.

In the longer term, education in schools will also play an important part in ensuring people are better able to take financial decision for themselves. Fidelity has supported the Personal Finance Education Group (pfeg) which works to equip teachers in secondary schools to include financial concepts in the curriculum. Thanks to our sponsorship, a pilot project has been extended to the whole country.

Pensions

See separate page.

[i] Source: IMA Market statistics August 2007.

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