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Terms of Reference
The New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act 2001 (the Act) requires the Retirement Commissioner to conduct a review of retirement income policies before the end of 2010. In accordance with the Act, the Government has provided these terms of reference to set out the aspects of retirement income policy and the topics that the Government wants the Commissioner to discuss in her review. The Commissioner may exercise her power under the Act to identify and discuss matters relating to retirement income policies that go beyond these terms of reference.
The Government has policies relating to both the public and private provision of retirement income.
- Public provision of retirement income is provided through New Zealand Superannuation and Veteran's Pension, supported by the operation of the New Zealand Superannuation Fund to smooth the cost over time.
- The Government also has policies to encourage the private provision of retirement income to supplement public provision. This is currently being implemented in two major ways:
- through programmesrun by the RetirementCommissioneraimed at educating people about the need to save for their retirement
- through the introduction of the KiwiSaver scheme.
Topics for the 2010 Review
In the 2010 Review, the Government expects a brief commentary on the developments and emerging trends in the retirement income provision area since the 2007 review.
The Government then seeks analysis of the impact and relevance of policy settings that impact on retirement income under a broad framework of three key standpoints:
- The way that Government agencies work together and contribute to effective retirement income policy.
- The role of New Zealand's financial services sector in relation to retirement income provision
- The future wellbeing of New Zealanders in their retirement years, and what this may mean for their communities, and for local and central government.
The first standpoint should include consideration of the interaction of retirement income policy with policies on housing, long term care and health, as well as data requirements for reliable forecasting and modelling.
The second standpoint should include adiscussion of the products financial services are or could be providing, including KiwiSaver, and an analysis of what further might be done to enhance markets and consumer trust in this sector. The appropriateness of the conservative investment allocation settings for the six default KiwiSaver schemes is an example of a matter that should be discussed.
The third standpoint should address the wellbeing of the current and future retired population, including particular population groups such as women, and discuss the role that communities and government can play. It should include investigation of how the global financial crisis may ,affectthe adequacy of retirement income provision for individuals at various life stages.
