28,000 people across South West Bedfordshire are now saving towards their retirement, new figures show, as a result of the Government’s auto enrolment scheme.
Employers must enrol staff aged 22 and over who earn more than £10,000 into a pension.
Figures from the Pensions Regulator show 1,730 businesses in South West Bedfordshire have enrolled in the scheme since it started in 2012, meaning 28,000 workers are benefitting.
Andrew Selous said: “Local businesses are showing how committed they are to helping their employees save for a future and I am delighted to see so many businesses on board. I want to thank business owners for supporting the Government’s drive to change the way people save and plan for their future.
We have made great success with this scheme but I know we need to go further and that is why we are going to lower the age for automatic enrolment to 18 which will benefit another 900,000 people across the country.”