Four ways to ensure you're better off when you retire
The pensions commission has been revived to determine how best to help workers, as experts warn those retiring in 2050 are on course to receive significantly less private pension income than current pensioners.
Individuals should check if their employer offers higher pension contributions beyond the minimum 3 per cent, as many will match increased employee contributions, significantly boosting savings without a major impact on take-home pay.
Increasing personal pension contributions, even by small amounts like 1 per cent, can lead to substantial long-term gains over a career due to investment growth, with ideal times to do so being after a new job, promotion, or pay rise.
Further actions include checking for and potentially backpaying National Insurance contribution gaps, utilising other personal pension plans like SIPPs or Lifetime ISAs for tax relief, and addressing the high risk of undersaving among the self-employed.
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Telegraph
5 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Asylum seekers who lie about their age to be targeted with new checks
Asylum seekers who lie about being children are to be targeted with new AI face checks. Dame Angela Eagle, the border security and asylum minister, said it was the 'most cost-effective' way to check whether a migrant was falsely claiming to be under 18 to boost their chances of entering the UK. The move comes as a report by the immigration watchdog revealed that up to three-quarters of cases where age was disputed saw children wrongly classed as adults, while a quarter who claimed to be children were judged to be over 18. David Bolt, independent chief inspector of borders and immigration, said it was 'inevitable' some decisions would be wrong without a 'foolproof test' of chronological age. He said this was 'clearly a cause for concern, especially where a child is denied the rights and protections to which they are entitled'. Currently initial age decisions are made by Home Office staff based on a migrant's physical appearance and demeanour. Ministers hope to roll out facial-age estimation for migrants arriving by small boats and lorries next year, subject to further testing of the technology. Dame Angela said the technology, trained on millions of images of people with confirmed ages, was able to produce an age estimate with a known degree of accuracy for an individual whose age was unknown or disputed 'Early assessments suggest that facial-age estimation could produce workable results much quicker than other potential methods of scientific or technological age assessment, such as bone X-rays or MRI scans, but at a fraction of the cost, and with no requirement for a physical medical procedure or accompanying medical supervision,' she said. Between January 2023 and January 2025, Mr Bolt said 20 out of 59 cases where a person was sent to Manston migrant centre as an adult were then later sent back to Western Jet Foil, UK Border Force's rescue and arrivals base in Dover docks, and accepted as being a child. The independent chief inspector of borders and immigration said: 'The environment at Western Jet Foil, and the physical and mental condition of the migrants after a long, arduous, and perilous journey, make the already difficult task of assessing age even more challenging.' The report, which does not cover the Home Office's fresh announcement on using artificial intelligence, calls for officials to involve interpreters, social workers and experts in the process to gain more confidence in its decisions. Mr Bolt said many organisations who advocate for children believe the initial age decision process is 'crude and cruel'. He added: 'Over the years, and again during this inspection, I have listened to young people who felt disbelieved and dismissed by the Home Office, whose hopes have been crushed, and whose mental health has suffered. 'The Home Office has an uphill task in persuading these critics that it can be trusted in this area. Committing to better communication, engagement and collaboration would be a start.' Refugee Council welcomes Government response During the visit, inspectors saw examples of a lack of cultural awareness, decisions that relied on generic physical characteristics, and questioning that focused on the migrant's credibility which should not form the basis of an age decision. Mr Bolt also cited concerns from local authorities and NGOs of examples of young people who felt pressured into signing a Home Office 'statement of age' document to say they were over 18 years old, or had not understood what they had been asked to sign. The chief inspector also called for both the Home Office and its critics to agree that some initial age decisions, that are opinion, are wrong, and that some migrants lie about their age. He added that this means not having a type of initial age assessment risks incentivising more to do so, which is not in the best interests of unaccompanied asylum seeking children. Responding to the report, the Home Office accepted all recommendations, including to carry out an evaluation of initial age decision training, and publish guidance on processes needed before someone signs the 'statement of age' form. The Refugee Council welcomed the Government's response to the report, but also called for caution over the use of AI to determine ages. Enver Solomon, the chief executive of the charity, said: 'We welcome the decision to abandon intrusive scientific methods like X-rays and MRI, which we have long called for, but we are not convinced that replacing them with AI tools is the answer. 'These technologies continue to raise serious questions about accuracy, ethics and fairness. 'We call on the Government to implement reforms that prioritise professional assessments led by trained social workers, which is the most accurate way to determine age and ensure that every child is properly identified, supported, and given the chance to recover and thrive.'
The Sun
5 minutes ago
- The Sun
Migrant black market work crackdown is a welcome start but ministers cannot afford to take their eyes off the ball
Delivered? ONE of the biggest draws for Channel migrants — along with the chance later to claim benefits — is the ability to work in Britain on the black market. Voters were furious at the sight of some blatantly operating illegally as delivery riders while being housed for free in taxpayer-funded hotels. 1 So it's good news the Government has followed a Sun investigation by now agreeing to share locations of those hotels with food delivery companies like Deliveroo and Just Eat. It means riders can have their accounts frozen if they are found to be living there. Bitter experience tells us that if there's one takeaway from the migrant crisis, it's that criminal gangs will always find a way round the rules. Ministers cannot afford to take their eyes off the ball on this one. In the red WHAT a sad and sorry mess Britain's economy is currently in. Borrowing costs are the highest since 1998 — with more borrowed in June than at any time since records began, except during Covid. Our national debt interest is now so huge that it's annually twice what is spent on defence. Shamefully, it also out-strips money allocated for our kids' education. Such an unsustainable debt mountain is likely to spark an avalanche of chaos. Undercover delivery driver investigation Meanwhile, Angela Rayner wants to kill growth — the key to getting us out of this debt nightmare — by whacking taxes on everything. That apparently now includes suggesting punishing levies on tourism despite fears it will drive away overseas visitors. Nevermind that it's one of the UK's soaring success stories. Why do the Left see success and immediately want to stamp it out? RIP, prince HEAVY metal never felt heavier in our hearts than it does today. Ozzy Osbourne, the Prince of Darkness, has left us. It's no exaggeration to say that the Brummie hell-raiser was one of the most iconic rock frontmen of all time. Ozzy's wasn't a carefully crafted image — he lived and breathed every moment of wild excess. But the working class hero was also a music pioneer who went from playing Birmingham pub The Crown to becoming one of Britain's best-loved sons. One final hurrah on stage this month gave him the most fitting ending of all. Belting out Paranoid in front of 40,000 adoring fans in his home city. It really was the last song ever.
BBC News
5 minutes ago
- BBC News
Durham County Council approves HMO rules
New planning rules which make it tougher for landlords to convert properties into shared housing have been Durham County Council has supported a proposal to introduce an Article 4 Direction, which requires owners to apply for planning permission when converting properties into Homes in Multiple Occupation (HMO).Currently, properties for between three and six occupants can be converted without planning permission. Campaigners said they were "absolutely thrilled" and added the changes would help to improve people's quality of life, following an increase in HMOs in certain areas. "This is going to be huge for the community, because people will now be able to know if the house next door is HMO, because they'll be notified," said Matthew Tough, the secretary of East Durham Communities Standing Together group, which has been calling for more regulations."They'll get a chance to object. If there's any parking concerns in the street, they'll be noted and recorded."Councillor Lyndsey Fox, cabinet member for economy and partnerships, said there had been a "steady increase" in HMOs outside of Durham City over the past few years, with the number rising more significantly since 2021."Residents have expressed concerns that the increase in HMOs is negatively impacting residential amenity and local character," Fox said. "In these circumstances, it is considered an Article 4 is needed to enable the proper planning of the county to maintain mixed and balanced communities by requiring planning applications to be submitted for HMO use." 'A lot safer' Article 4 regulations are currently in place in areas around Durham City popular with students, the Local Democracy Reporting Service East Durham Communities Standing Together group had warned an expansion of the rules was needed, as some of the county's most deprived areas were being targeted by private Tough added the county council would now be able to scrutinise proposed designs and call applications to committee so it could be debated."They can ensure that it's going to be safe for all parties involved - the tenants, the community. It'll just be a lot safer for everybody involved," he Nicola Lyons, cabinet member for neighbourhoods and environment, added that HMOs could provide an affordable form of accommodation for a wide range of groups."However, an overconcentration of this type of housing can have a negative impact on day-to-day life for communities, often because of issues such as increased noise, the general appearance of properties, refuse management, and parking issues," she new measures were approved at a cabinet meeting on Monday. A public consultation will be held before a final decision is made later this year. Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
