Good morning and welcome to your Morning Briefing for Thursday 6 November 2025. To get this in your inbox every morning click here.
Average firm spends 13 hours a week on compliance
The average advice firm is now spending 13 hours a week on compliance, a new study has revealed.
Model Office’s latest advice industry benchmark report highlighted the rising cost of compliance-related activity and the burden it is placing on firms.
Overall, half of advice firms said they are still concerned they are not gaining enough rigorous outsourced compliance support with the Consumer Duty in mind, with one in three similarly concerned regarding internal compliance support.
Auto-enrolment must include ‘invisible’ workers
There is overwhelming public support for the self-employed and gig workers to be included in auto-enrolment (AE), a new study from PensionBee has found.
Overall, two thirds (66%) of the 1,000 people the firm surveyed believed these ‘invisible workers’ should be automatically signed up to a pension, aligning pension contributions with the annual self-assessment tax return.
PensionBee’s research also found that 24% of respondents saw the expansion of AE to invisible workers as a priority that they would like to see implemented in the upcoming Budget.
Anticipation meets anxiety ahead of Budget
Excitement — or perhaps anticipation is the better word — is building over what tax changes the government will unveil in the Budget on 26 November, writes Tony Wickenden. The conversation has long since moved from if to what.
Think tanks, he said, have set out a wide range of ideas, from the Resolution Foundation and Demos to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) and, most recently, CenTax.
Most advisers will know Labour’s now familiar manifesto pledge that it “will not increase taxes on working people – which is why we will not increase national insurance, the basic, higher or additional rates of tax or VAT”.
Quote Of The Day
2025 has been another Goldilocks vintage for global fixed income
– Benoit Anne, senior managing director and head of market insights group, MFS Investment Management, on the ‘surprise’ comeback of Goldilocks in fixed income
Stat Attack
New analysis from Fidelity International highlights the crucial role of workplace and private pensions for UK savers, as the UK ranks lowest among G7 countries across three key measures of state pension generosity.
Retirees in the UK receive just 22% of average earnings from the state pension – the lowest in the G7. By contrast, other major economies provide significantly higher levels of income support. The research shows:
22%
UK retirees receive 22% of average earnings from the state pension — the lowest replacement rate in the G7.
20 years
Expected years a UK retiree receives the state pension on average, almost seven fewer than France (26.6).
40%
The share of UK retirees’ income coming from public pensions, versus over 70% in France and Italy.
4.7% of GDP
UK government spending on old-age pensions as a share of GDP (tied lowest in the G7 with Canada).
42%
The percentage of UK investors who plan to increase their retirement savings over the next year (46% among those aged 55+).
Source: Fidelity International
In Other News
Plannr CRM, a UK-based specialist CRM solution for financial advice firms, is proud to announce that it has achieved SOC 2 certification.
The firm said that in a sector where data security is paramount, it has taken the decisive step of obtaining accreditation to demonstrate to advisers and clients that the systems managing sensitive financial information are built and operated with rigour, transparency and integrity.
Plannr already embeds robust security measures throughout its infrastructure, including AES-256 encryption for client data and documents, two-factor authentication (2FA) for advisers and clients, daily vulnerability scanning, and hosting on secure cloud platforms equipped with intrusion detection and audit logging.
Achieving SOC 2 certification places Plannr among the first financial CRM providers in the UK to complete this level of independent assurance.
This milestone directly supports Plannr’s mission to empower firms across the advice community, from sole advisers to multi-location networks, to operate more efficiently, confidently and securely.
Reeves set to spare UK banks from Budget tax raid (Financial Times)
Interest rates expected to be held as Budget looms (BBC News)
Bond investors call on Reeves to double fiscal buffer (Reuters)
Did You See?
Reassured, the UK’s largest life insurance broker, has appointed Laura Mullaney as chief growth officer, effective October 2025.
Mullaney will oversee the implementation of key operational transformation projects, including digital scripting and enhanced contact strategies aimed at improving customer engagement through digital channels.
She will also support the continued expansion of Reassured’s partnerships programme and lead initiatives to enhance operations and customer experience.
With more than 20 years’ experience in financial services, Mullaney joins from Hastings Direct, where she was transformation director.
