The Pensions Commission’s final report is set to be published in February 2027, with the government’s response to follow in the spring, according to Pensions Minister, Torsten Bell.

Addressing the Pensions UK Annual Conference, Bell acknowledged that 2026 had been a “really busy” year, with the Pension Schemes Act being delivered and the state pension triple lock reform announcement.

He stated that 2027 was set to be another “really big” year, setting out the timelines for how the department was planning to operate over the coming year.

Bell confirmed he had asked the Pensions Commission to deliver its final report in February.

“I said to you before early 2027, I meant early,” he continued. “It will come in February. The government response is not going to sit there for ages, we will deliver that in the spring.

“By the middle of next year, we will have put the state pension on a sustainable basis and we would have set out the governance approach to making sure that private pension savings are delivering adequate, not just levels of savings, but an adequate private pension system.”

He emphasised that these changes were going to require the industry and government to do a lot of work, and thanked those who had contributed and were making it happen.

When asked about the political consensus on the changes, Bell said there was a clear political consensus that things need to change.

“The guy that is now the Shadow Pensions Minister stood up in the House of Commons during the Pension Schemes Act and proceedings, and criticised us for not moving quick enough in terms of what is happening with automatic enrolment,” he added.

“So, I have total faith that the opposition front bench will follow through with the logic of that.”

This article originally appeared in our sister publication Pensions Age.

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