Three quarters of workers not saving enough for 'moderate' pension income, industry warns
Earlier today, the pensions industry issued a warning that approximately 75% of workers are not saving sufficiently to secure a “moderate” income during retirement, with many facing a significant drop in income upon leaving work.
The industry body Pensions UK reported that only 23% of the working population are on track to achieve a moderate retirement lifestyle. This lifestyle requires an income of £32,700 for a single-person household and £45,500 for a two-person household.
A “minimum” retirement lifestyle is estimated to cost £13,900 annually for one person and £22,500 for two, while a “comfortable” lifestyle requires £45,400 and £62,700 respectively.
These figures take into account everyday expenses such as food, essential household bills, transport, as well as social activities and hobbies. It is expected that 82% of people will meet the minimum level.
All three retirement lifestyle levels assume receipt of the full state pension and do not include rent or mortgage payments.
Zoe Alexander, executive director of policy and advocacy at Pensions UK, stated:
"The latest update to the retirement living standards underlines a clear reality for many people – today’s saving levels will not be enough for the retirement they expect.
Without action, too many risk facing a cliff edge drop in income when they stop work."
Ms Alexander further advised:
"We also encourage people to speak to their employer and see whether the organisation is prepared to support them to save above the minimum, such as higher rates of matching pension contributions."
Google will start testing new search changes on 'subset' of UK website owners today
Google announced it will begin testing new features immediately that allow a “subset of website owners” in the UK to control how their links and content appear in generative AI search features.
Mrinalini Loew, general manager at Google Search Ecosystem, wrote today:
"We’re also actively listening to feedback from publishers and creators, and engaging with regulators like the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority to ensure website owners have the right tools as user preferences evolve. Today, we’re beginning to test a new control that lets website owners manage how their links and content appear in generative AI Search features."
The new tool will enable website owners to decide whether their site appears in and helps “ground responses” in Google’s AI search features such as AI overviews and AI mode.
Loew clarified that this control will not be used as a ranking factor for search results outside of the generative AI Search features.
"We’re also starting to roll out new insights for website owners in Search Console about the appearance of their pages in generative AI Search features. These insights include impressions metrics and information about which pages appear in AI responses and in what countries. We’re continuing to work with website owners to understand what insights will be most helpful to inform their strategies, and we’ll introduce additional metrics over time.
We are beginning to roll these features out to a subset of website owners in the UK, allowing for thorough testing before rolling them out to website owners globally. As AI opens up new opportunities for discovery, we’ll keep improving our experiences to help people explore the web, and keep building tools for websites to better engage their audiences."
Google has nine months to implement changes to its search, regulator says
The UK competition regulator has mandated that Google has nine months to implement all required changes to its search services.
However, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) expects that “important parts of the controls” will be available to publishers well before this deadline.
The CMA has also requested Google to submit and publish compliance reports detailing the changes made and how the company has complied with the requirements. These reports are due every six months for the first year, after which the CMA will review the reporting frequency.
Google is not the only major technology company under scrutiny; the CMA has also launched strategic market status investigations into Apple and Microsoft.
The new rules follow the CMA’s decision last year to designate Google as having strategic market status in general search services, a status that grants the regulator authority to impose a special regulatory regime on the company.
The watchdog’s powers under new digital laws allow it to mandate changes to Google’s operations in these areas.
This development is expected to be welcomed by many news media organisations and web publishers, who hope it will enhance their negotiating power to receive payment when their content is used in Google’s AI mode.
CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell also stated this morning that Google’s compliance will be actively monitored and that the regulator will be “announcing further action in relation to Google’s search business in the coming weeks.”
Introduction: Google must give UK publishers choice to block AI search summaries, says competition watchdog
Good morning, and welcome to our continuous coverage of business, financial markets, and the global economy.
The UK’s competition watchdog has announced that web publishers and news organisations will now have the option to opt out of AI-generated overviews in Google search results.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) stated its new rules will strengthen the position of publishers, including news organisations, enabling them to negotiate content deals with Google more effectively.
This intervention follows complaints from media organisations reporting a decline in click-through traffic to their websites—and consequently, reduced revenue—since Google began displaying AI summaries at the top of search results.
CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell said:
"With features like AI Overviews rapidly reshaping online search, it is crucial that content publishers, including news organisations, have appropriate bargaining power over how their content is used. At the same time, these measures will help tens of millions of UK search users better understand and trust the information presented to them.
It’s also important that any action we take in this space can move with the times. Google has recently announced changes to its search business and the requirements we’ve introduced today are designed to respond to what Google is doing now and in the future. We’ll also continue to use the unique flexibility of the UK regime to monitor and address future concerns as they arise and we will be announcing further action in relation to Google’s search business in the coming weeks."
Under the new rules, Google must ensure that publisher content is “properly attributed” with clear links in AI search results.
Additionally, Google must allow publishers to opt out of having their content used for the “fine-tuning of AI models,” providing publishers with confidence that they retain control over all AI use cases involving their content, the CMA explained.
The agenda
Today: St Petersburg International Economic Forum
Today: Cabinet reshuffle to be announced after market close
