Menzies LLP’s Conor McManus warns of troubles ahead unless the UK steers a different path to boost savings and investment
There’s been ongoing debate for years around Britain’s retirement savings gap and renewed scrutiny of whether UK pension capital is doing enough to support domestic growth businesses. However questions are again being raised about the strength and coherence of the country’s long-term savings culture.
Despite repeated policy ambition to channel more institutional and retail investment into UK plc, particularly into high-growth sectors such as technology, there’s still a persistent tension between government objectives and the financial reality facing individual savers.
Rising tax pressures, fiscal drag from frozen thresholds, and ongoing uncertainty around the long-term direction of pension and inheritance tax rules continue to shape how people are approaching saving and investing. At the same time, industry concerns about inadequate retirement provision have added further weight to the argument that the UK’s savings system may be under increasing strain.
In this context, Conor McManus, Director of Private Client Tax at business advisory and accountancy firm, Menzies LLP, argues below that confidence in the savings framework itself is central to unlocking any meaningful shift in domestic investment behaviour. He points to a growing disconnect between policy ambition and saver sentiment, and one that he believes is becoming harder to ignore.
Conor McManus, Director, Private Client Tax, Menzies LLP said:
“Britain can’t build a homegrown investment culture if people don’t trust or use the savings vehicle that’s supposed to fund it. Consumers are already squeezed, with frozen income tax thresholds pulling more people into higher tax bands, leaving less financial room to save. The Pensions Commission reports that fifteen million people are not saving enough for retirement, and IHT changes arriving in April 2027 could make the savings crisis worse, not better. A potential double tax charge of 67% or more, alongside incoming amendments to rules on gifting and estate values, create additional complexity, and further limit confidence in a system that continues to shift year on year.”
We can’t expect pension funds to back British businesses while providing multiple reasons why individuals should put their money somewhere safer. Without fundamental changes, the investment culture this country needs to grow will continue to be written in dollars, not pounds.”
