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<p>Automatic enrolment is a success story that has seen over 10 million employees
automatically enrolled into a workplace pension. Many of those workers benefitting
were once poorly served or excluded from workplace pension saving, with many more
women, lower earners and younger people building an asset for their future.</p><p>
</p><p>The Department’s evaluation of automatic enrolment and ongoing monitoring of
the impacts of workplace pensions means that the we regularly check how the meeting
of their automatic enrolment duties affects small businesses financially. Evidence
from the 2019 Automatic Enrolment Evaluation report1 and a separate research study
with new employers2 indicates that whilst some small and micro employers have experienced
increased costs as a result of automatic enrolment, they tended to perceive the costs
involved in monthly administration of pension contributions to be relatively low and
the contributions themselves as manageable in the context of the overall running costs
of their business.</p><p> </p><p>Our immediate focus during the covid-19 national
lock-down was to support employers and savers through the Coronavirus Job Retention
Scheme, which included the payment of employer workplace pension contributions up
until the end of July. At the same time, the Pensions Regulator took a proportionate
approach on automatic enrolment compliance to minimise unnecessary burdens on hard-pressed
employers, giving them more time and flexibility to meet their duties.</p><p> </p><p>By
early August, our unprecedented package of emergency support to employers was helping
1.2 million businesses and furloughing 9.6 million jobs. Our aim remains to support,
create and protect jobs - giving businesses confidence to retain and hire new workers
builds capacity for retirement saving.</p><p> </p><p>In the Chipping Barnet constituency,
since 2012, approximately 10,000 eligible jobholders have been automatically enrolled
and 3,030 employers have supported their employees3.</p><p> </p><p>1 Automatic Enrolment
evaluation report 2019, DWP, February 2020</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/automatic-enrolment-evaluation-report-2019"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/automatic-enrolment-evaluation-report-2019</a><br></p><p>2
Automatic Enrolment: qualitative research with new employers, DWP, February 2020</p><p><a
href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/automatic-enrolment-qualitative-research-with-new-employers"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/automatic-enrolment-qualitative-research-with-new-employers</a><br></p><p>3
The Pensions Regulator’s data on Automatic enrolment declaration of compliance by
constituency, available via the following weblink:</p><p><a href="https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/document-library/research-and-analysis/data-requests"
target="_blank">https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/document-library/research-and-analysis/data-requests</a></p><p
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