Steve Webb, Pensions Minister, has stated that the coalition government will scrutinise auto-enrolment and the National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) before making a decision on the future of these proposed schemes.

In addition, the Government has also announced that it intends to encourage people to work for longer by imposing legislation that will make it illegal for businesses to force employees to give up work at 65, and will speed up plans to raise the state pension age for men to 66, perhaps by as soon as 2016.

The possibility of rising the retirement age even further to reflect changes in life expectancy in the UK will also be consulted by the Government.

Commenting on these developments, Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith remarked: “Now is absolutely the right time to live up to our responsibility to reform our outdated pension system and to take action where the previous government failed to do so.

“If Britain is to have a stable, affordable pension system, people need to work longer, but we will reward their hard work with a decent state pension that will enable them to enjoy quality of life in their retirement.”

However, several organisations, including the TUC, have contributed to an open letter which warns against any radical changes to the new pensions system, which is due to commence in 2012.

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