Putting pensions to work: Economic easing and the role of pensions in promoting growth

Article

Banker and asset manager Kees de Koning proposes a new scheme, which he calls economic easing, which would rechannel the cash locked up in pension funds towards increasing productivity among British businesses.

Positive cash flow is the key to sustainable economic growth for any participant in the economic process, be it a government, bank, company or individual. The UK government, the banks, individuals in general, and the overseas importers are currently not in a strong enough cash-flow position to spend more. This leaves pension savings cash flow as the only viable non-inflationary source of funds for economic expansion.

If the government, the private sector and pension fund managers can agree to work together then this economic easing scheme would help to ensure that companies have the funds available to expand in the most economically sensible way: by increasing share capital ringfenced for longer-term growth investments. It will also facilitate a more efficient deployment of pension savings cash flow in the company sector, a desirable objective for long-term pension savers.

Related items

  1. Doctor with patient for consultation, medical advice or procedure at clinic

    Taken to heart: Inequalities in heart disease in Scotland

    More than 7.6 million people across the UK live with cardiovascular disease (CVD), around twice as many as live with Alzheimer’s disease and cancer combined. 
  2. A beautiful sunset in the Scottish highlands with renewable energy wind turbines far into the horizon

    Skills passports: An essential part of a fair transition

    This month, government will publish its Clean Energy Workforce Strategy. This plan covers two aims. First, filling the growing demand for skills in clean energy industries is essential to keep on track to reach the government’s clean power…
  3. The Bank of England is watched over by a statue of the Duke of Wellington seated on his horse

    Fixing the leak: How to end the £22 billion annual taxpayer losses at the Bank of England

    The Bank of England increased its interest rates over recent years, aimed at reducing inflation. But this has also had an unintended effect on the Bank of England’s massive government bond buying – ‘quantitative easing’ – programme.