Saving for retirement is "critical"
The government needs to do more to encourage Britons to save for their retirement, it has been suggested.
According to F&C Investments, consumers are less willing to put away money for pensions pots as luxuries such as holidays and mobile phones are now considered to be a "much higher priority".
Jason Hollands, F&C Investments spokesperson, said: "With rising life expectancy, it is a matter of critical importance that action is taken to encourage people to save for their retirement."
He added that a "sprawling system of benefits and credits" are deterring Britons on low incomes from saving money.
The representative claimed that a fall in tax incentives associated with pension schemes and savings accounts has also seen a decrease in retirement uptake.
Mr Hollands' comments follow research released by the Office of National Statistics revealing that the number of employees paying into private sector pension schemes accounted for 4.4 million last year, down from the 5.7 million recorded in 2000.
Earlier this week, Danny Alexander, work and pensions spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats, claimed that uptake of workplace pension schemes is "plummeting".
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