Member Article

Staging numbers set to jump six fold plus

Speaking at today’s Institute of Certified Bookkeepers (ICB) 5th Annual Summit, Jack McVitie, Chief Executive of LEBC Group (LEBC) pushed home the message that pensions auto-enrolment is gathering massive pace and payroll professionals have a huge role to play in helping employers meet their legal requirements.

Speaking alongside the Minister of State for Pensions, Steve Webb and The Pensions Regulator, he highlighted that by January 2016 the number of employers reaching their pension auto-enrolment staging date will jump to over 100,000 every month, from current levels of 15,000, and to over 200,000 per month by the end of 2016 before dropping back during 2017.

McVitie said, “The numbers are massive and payroll has to be key to successful implementation. The only way we see employers meeting such a challenge is through the support of payroll professionals coupled with robust and proven online solutions.

“So far it has been mainly large and medium size employers who have had to stage and our experience is that our online solution aeComply has been more a tool for the employers themselves. However, as more small to micro businesses are approaching staging, we are seeing the focus shift significantly to aeComply being a tool for payroll professionals who support those businesses.

“Auto-enrolment is a major social project unlike anything previously seen in the pensions industry before, the Government has an expectation of success and The Pensions Regulator has a responsibility to ensure success.

“To plan properly, we believe preparation should start 12 months before actual staging so realistically employers aims can be met to minimise costs, minimise risk of penalties, reduce stress, and most important to create a decent scheme for them.”

The ICB’s 5th Annual Bookkeepers Summit was held at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre at Westminster, where over 500 Certified Bookkeepers attended.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by LEBC Group Ltd .