To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the impact of the changes to the upper earnings limit for national insurance contributions from 2009 on the proposed personal accounts savings scheme. (140359)

There is no impact. The personal accounts earnings band thresholds will be unrelated to the annual announcements made in the budget on tax and national insurance. As we announced in our response to the consultation on ‘Personal Accounts: a new way to save’, these will be set between around £5,000 and £33,500 (in 2006-07 terms), uprated thereafter in line with average earnings.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he intends to increase the upper earnings limit for contributions to the proposed personal accounts saving scheme in line with the proposed increase in the upper earnings limit for national insurance contributions from 2009 which was announced in the 2007 Budget. (140360)

The personal accounts earnings band thresholds will be set at around £5,000 and £33,500 (in 2006-07 terms), uprated thereafter annually in line with average earnings. This will establish the thresholds in their own right. The level of the thresholds will be unrelated to the annual announcements made in the budget on tax and national insurance.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his latest estimate is of the additional number of employees who would be eligible for the proposed personal accounts savings scheme if the upper earnings limit for contributions were increased to £43,000. (140361)

There would be no impact on the number of employees who would be eligible for the proposed personal accounts savings scheme if the upper earnings limit for contributions were increased to £43,000. This is because in companies that opt for personal accounts all employees earning above the lower limit are automatically enrolled into the scheme. Changing the upper limit only changes the earnings on which contributions would be paid not eligibility for automatic enrolment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on what date he plans to publish the Government's final proposals on the level of the annual cap on personal contributions to the new personal pension accounts; and if he will make a statement. (141837)

The White Paper, ‘Personal accounts: a new way to save’ consulted on an annual contribution limit of £5,000. The summary of responses, published on 14 June 2007, contains detail on both the level of the limit and how it is to be designed. After further analysis, the Government believe that a contribution limit of £3,600 better balances the need to focus personal accounts on the target market with the need to allow individuals to save flexibly for their retirement. The £3,600 limit will be based on 2005 earnings levels, and will be uprated with earnings from 2005 to implementation in 2012 and beyond.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the Personal Accounts: A New Way to Save, page 25, whether the Government expects that the default fund will invest in a wide range of (a) classes of asset and (b) equities and bonds. (141535)

The Personal Accounts Delivery Authority will be tasked with applying its expertise to develop an investment strategy for personal accounts. In doing so, it will consider a wide range of assets classes, including a range of different equities and bonds. Once in operation, scheme trustees will be ultimately responsible for investment decisions, as they would in any other defined contribution occupational scheme.