A start to plug the protection gap

In a keynote speech he will deliver tonight to around 350 delegates at the third annual Protection Review post conference dinner Trevor Matthews will call for the Government to learn from the Australian superannuation model and enable employers to provide inexpensive life cover for their employees within the proposed Personal Accounts framework.

Trevor Matthews will argue that the proposed launch of Personal Accounts in 2012 provides the Government with an excellent opportunity to extend life cover to the masses cost-effectively.

Matthews comments: "Down Under, employers pay $1 a week per employee for life cover; a cheap way of providing life cover on a falling scale. Cover starts at $60,000 for younger staff and reduces to $20,000 as staff get older. An initiative like this could reduce the life protection gap by 20% with one piece of legislative change! It's simple and we know it works. If Yvette Cooper, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions wants a quick win, here it is on a plate."