Index-linked pensions are essential.

Apathy and ignorance used to surround the subject of pensions. Most doctors gave little thought to it even though the final capitalised value of their occupational pensions could often exceed that of their homes. If the same time and effort were devoted to the upkeep of superannuation schemes as is spent on home maintenance, many of the present pension anomalies could have been avoided. But inflation has changed all this. The apathy has now gone and a doctor's pension has become as much of an obsession as remuneration, particularly if he can see retirement approaching. Even so, there are still far too many doctors approaching retirement who only bother to investigate their pensions during the last year of service, when it is far too late to rectify anomalies or purchase additional benefits. I have heard academics, teachers, members of the armed Forces, and doctors criticise the index linking of pensions, believing that this arrangement is exclusive to the Civil Service, quite unaware that it also applies to their own pensions. In fact, at least five and a half million employees are in occupational pension schemes that provide inflation-proofed pensions; this figure includes the Civil Service, the armed Forces, the Health Service, local government, police, and the nationalised industries, and represents over 20% of the employed population and over 40% of the total number of employees in occupational pension schemes.