Reform-linked think tank calls for abolition of state pension


A Reform UK-linked think tank has called for the abolition of the state pension and for senior bosses at the Bank of England to have their pay docked if inflation targets are not met.
The Centre for a Better Britain (CFABB) also proposed £75 billion of tax cuts, predominantly for the wealthy.
The “radical” report, released on Wednesday, suggests scrapping capital gains tax and inheritance tax, which the think tank argued encourages people to move their wealth out of Britain.
Corporation tax is “internationally uncompetitive” and should be reduced from 25% to 15% over eight years, the CFABB said.
The Bank of England’s senior bosses would have their pay linked to hitting inflation targets, currently set at 2%. This would include the governor of the Bank, Andrew Bailey.
Public spending would have to be slashed to accommodate any tax changes, it stressed, but the report stopped short of explaining exactly how the measures would be paid for with cuts elsewhere.
The state pension is predicted to cost the public purse £146.1 billion in 2025 to 2026, according to Department for Work and Pensions forecasts.
Instead, children at birth would get a £1,000 “lifetime investment account”, with holders later contributing up to 15% of earnings into their personal retirement pot.
The state pension would only be available as a “means-tested safety net” for the poorest.
The 181-page report drew on “the experience and expertise of senior figures from across financial services, business, economics and politics”.
“The result is a programme of radical reform to Britain’s financial system and tax code, designed ultimately to raise productivity and living standards - through better-paid jobs, higher retirement incomes, higher business investment, more businesses starting and scaling, and less time and money spent on unproductive activity.”
The CFABB formally launched last year, after raising fresh funds under its previous guise, Resolute 1850.
It has clear links with Nigel Farage’s party, but the report’s authors insisted that their work has not yet been reviewed by the party.
James Orr, Reform UK’s former head of policy, was previously the chair of the think tank’s advisory board.
He left to join the party in February and was earlier this month suspended by Reform after being filmed in an undercover investigation appearing to suggest ways around UK electoral law to secure foreign donations.
He denies any wrongdoing.
