Money Box

Major reforms are needed in workplace pensions to increase the amount people are saving for their retirement, but it will take the next 20 years to get there. That's according to Professor Nick Pearce, one of the people appointed by the Government to its Pensions Commission to look at the problem and find solutions. Government figures show that around 18 million working age adults are not saving into a pension and nearly half of those have a job. Professor Pearce talks to Paul Lewis about what they're looking at to tackle that problem.
Three of the UK's leading end-of-life charities have described the way bereaved families are being treated by the Capita-run Civil Service Pension Scheme as an "injustice". Last week the government published data showing more than 1,000 cases where loved ones had been waiting more than 100 days for survivor pensions and death in service payments. Capita has apologised many times already but faces the prospect of losing the contract of running the scheme, worth hundreds of millions of pounds, as the government looks to bring it back in-house.
More than a trillion pounds of our savings is sitting in accounts that pay little or even no interest, when it could easily be earning 4% or more elsewhere. Those figures come from the Bank of England analysed by the investment platform Lightyear. They show £1.2 trillion is sitting in UK bank and building society accounts and a quarter of that amount is earning no interest at all.
Presenter: Paul Lewis
Reporters: Dan Whitworth and Jo Krasner
Researcher: Amber Mehmood
Editor: Jess Quayle
Senior News Editor: Sara Wadeson
(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 19th September 2026)

More than 320,000 households in England and Wales complained to their water supplier last year. A rise of 56% on the year before, according a report from the industry watchdog the Consumer Council for Water.
It also says the number of people escalating complaints to them has rocketed 84% - the biggest rise in the watchdog's 20-year history.
The topic of water is huge conversation right now, from who should control it, the price of bills and what happens when things go wrong.
Andy White, from the Consumer Council for Water, which represents water customers in England and Wales and Jeevan Jones, chief economist at Water UK, which represents the companies responsible for getting water to our homes join Felicity Hannah to get answers to some of your questions and comments.
Presenter: Felicity Hannah
Producer: Sarah Rogers
Editor: Jess Quayle
Senior Editor: Sara Wadeson
(First broadcast 3pm on Wednesday 16th of September 2026).

When someone you love needs financial help, lending them money can seem like the easiest way to support them. And when you're the one facing financial difficulties, turning to someone close to you for a loan can feel like the most natural solution.
Around 1 in 4 of us borrow from family and friends when times are tight according to a survey from the not for profit, Fair4All Finance. It found many of those people were asking for smaller amounts of money of around £250 or less to help pay for essentials like food and bills. However, for some, it could be for a loan of tens of thousands of pounds, like children asking for money for a house deposit.

The tension is, that if you don't get it right, you could damage relationships with people you care about.
So what are the rules and what happens when things don't go to plan?
Joining Felicity Hannah is Melinda Giles, a partner at the law firm Giles Wilson who specialises in family law and Peter Tutton, Director of Policy at the debt charity StepChange.
Presenter: Felicity Hannah
Producer: Sarah Rogers
Editor: Jess Quayle
Senior Editor: Sara Wadeson
(This episode first aired on Wednesday the 9th September, 2026).

A new survey has suggested nearly a third of people in the UK believe they lost money last year because of their poor maths skills. One estimate puts the cost of innumeracy at £25 billion per year. To try and tackle this the government has asked a House of Lords committee to investigate. We'll hear from its chair, Lord Agnew.
The price of petrol is the highest it has been for almost four years. It was autumn 2022 when petrol last topped 160p a litre. We'll look at why that is and what you can do try and bring the costs down.
It's 50 years since the creation of the first index fund for ordinary investors - spearheaded by John Bogle, the founder of the American investment company The Vanguard Group. What was its impact on investing today?
And, why more than £1.5 billion languishing in unclaimed, government-backed Child Trust Funds will be the focus of a new review by the Financial Conduct Authority.
Presenter: Paul Lewis
Reporters: Dan Whitworth and Catherine Lund
Editor: Jess Quayle
Senior News Editor: Sara Wadeson
(First broadcast 12pm on Saturday 5th September 2026)

Children in England, Wales and Northern Ireland return to school this week, with Scottish children already well into the first term of the year.
Many parents and carers will have the cost of sending their children to school in mind this week, right as several changes come in on uniforms, free school meals and the continued rollout of free breakfast clubs.
Parents could expect to spend more than £15,500 on a child's school years from reception to GCSE, with school clubs accounting for the biggest share of the bill, according to new Nationwide research.
Felicity Hannah is joined by Carol Homden, the chief executive of children's charity Coram and Jasmine Birtles, director and co-founder of MoneyMagpie.
Presenter: Felicity Hannah
Producer: Will Harris
Production co-ordinator: Catherine Lund
Editor: Jess Quayle
Senior News Editor: Sara Wadeson
(First broadcast 3pm Wednesday 2nd September 2026)