The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
North-east MP joins effort to make Isas easier for everyone
A north-east MP has teamed up with other politicians, experts from the savings industry and accounting professionals to “radically shake up” individual savings accounts (Isas).
Kirsty Blackman, the SNP member for Aberdeen North, is part of an Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) Isa working group that was set up last July for the purpose of simplifying the Isa landscape.
The eight-strong group also includes Nottingham East Labour MP Chris Leslie and Altrincham & Sale West Conservative MP Sir Graham Brady.
Their report – Time for change: A Review of the Isa Regime – analyses the strengths and weaknesses of the savings vehicles.
One key proposal suggests folding existing Isa products into a simple “wrapper”, the Everything Isa, which allows people to monitor their savings on a single website.
Other recommendations include establishing an Everything Isa at the same time as a baby’s birth is registered, making sure future generations save.
The group has also proposed that when people open new savings accounts there should be an “add this to your Isa” tick-box option.
The working group has also called for annual savings limits to be scrapped in favour of a £1million lifetime contributions allowance.
AAT chief executive Mark Farrar said: “There used to be a couple of Isas that were simple, tax-efficient savings vehicles and were widely understood by the general public.
“We now have a system where there is an Isa for every day of the week, offering unnecessary complexity, bureaucracy and confusion. Isa simplification would make their availability and features more widely understood and, ultimately, play a greater part in addressing the country’s terrible savings ratio.”
He added: “This report offers a worthwhile, credible and thought-provoking alternative to the current muddied landscape, supporting AAT member calls for greater clarity and simplicity in the financial system.
“We would like to thank Kirsty for the tremendous contribution she made towards the creation and success of this report.”
Isas were introduced under the Labour government in 1999 to replace similar products – personal equity plans and tax-exempt special savings accounts - launched by the Tories in 1987 and 1990 respectively.
“We now have an Isa for every day of the week”