Fears that the Pensions Dashboard plans have been shelved by the Government were allayed after Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Esther McVey, appeared this week to back the scheme.

Ms McVey said the dashboard would offer “a great opportunity to give people straightforward access to their pension information in a clear and simple format – bringing together an individual’s savings in a single place online.

“It’s clear there is broad support for the concept of a dashboard and its potential to empower those putting money away for their futures.”

She also said the concept would be delivered by the financial services profession.

“By taking a leading role, and harnessing their knowledge, industry can develop a dashboard that works for pensions holders – and Government will help facilitate this,” she added.

The high-level backing was welcomed by experts, most enthusiastically by Steve Webb, director of policy at Royal London.

Mr Webb called the announcement “a huge breakthrough after a period of uncertainty,” but said the Government also had work to do to deliver the project.

He added: “There is much that the industry can do to deliver a dashboard, but only the Government can supply vitally important state pension data and only the Government can legislate to make sure that the dashboard’s coverage is comprehensive. 

“Backed by this renewed commitment by the Government, the whole pension industry now needs to work together to drive forward this much-needed initiative.”

Laura Suter, personal finance analyst at AJ Bell, was more sceptical.
 
She said: “The Government’s statement on the pension dashboard is hardly a huge vote of confidence for the initiative.  

“It hasn’t walked away from the project completely but it has acknowledged the size and the complexity of the challenge and laid responsibility for delivery firmly at the door of the industry. 

“A dashboard with full Government backing will have more chance of success, so it will be intriguing to see the findings from its feasibility study when they are published soon.
 
“An incomplete pension dashboard is not going to be of use to anyone, so it is important the Government commits to ensuring the state pension is included and uses its powers to ensure a critical mass of pension schemes sign-up to the initiative so that it delivers meaningful benefits to pension savers.”

Director general of the Association of British Insurers (ABI), Huw Evans, said the Government should “keep its promise” on the scheme.

He added: “This vital tool will allow everyone to find their pensions and see them together online, enabling people to keep track of their funds and work out if they are saving enough for retirement.

“The ABI, leading a cross-industry group of pension providers and schemes, has already delivered a great deal of the work needed to turn the dashboard into a reality, including a working prototype, and we look forward to continuing this collaboration.”