EUROPE - The European Federation for Retirement Provision (EFRP) has launched a website allowing anyone to give feedback on the European Union (EU) green paper on pensions.

The EFRP's website, EUPensionDebate.eu, seeks to engage people from outside the pensions industry as well, with social media such as Twitter aiming at increasing interactivity.

The European Commission's green paper, believed to call for the establishment of a guarantee system for scheme members in case of pension scheme collapse, is to be widely debated on the new website that will see the publication of feedback from both institutions and individuals.

The paper further is believed to recommend changes to the retirement age across Europe, so that it increases along with each rise in life expectancy.

Chris Verhaegen, secretary general of the EFRP, said the European Commission had been "ambitious" on getting the pension debate more to the fore.

She said: "The work of the European Commission now on pensions is really picking up because, in this legislature, the president, Barroso, has identified pensions as being of strategic importance."

Verhaegen said it was important to look at the pension system as a whole, rather than just examining one small area of the sector.

She commended the Commission's recent work on private pension schemes for signaling that private pensions will be part of pension policy and "not just supplementary".

"All this is now coming to fruition with the launch of this green paper," Verhaegen added, saying this was the moment to establish a forum where all people could comment on suggestions.

Topics