Tom Selby is AJ Bell's Director of Public Policy. He joined the company in 2016 as a Senior Analyst before becoming Head of Retirement Policy. He has a degree in Economics from Newcastle University.
Following his degree, Tom worked for seven years as a journalist specialising in pensions and retirement. He spent almost six years at a leading adviser trade magazine, Money Marketing, initially as a pensions reporter before becoming Head of News in 2014. He has won multiple awards for his role as a financial journalist, and was more recently nominated for Expert of the Year at the 2023 Headlinemoney Awards.
Tom is heavily involved with the PR and external communications teams at AJ Bell. His current role involves direct engagement with senior policy makers in Government and regulators. He also sits on the industry working group for the joint review of advice and guidance boundaries being conducted by the FCA and the Treasury. In the past, Tom has successfully campaigned for a number of consumer-focused reforms, including banning pension cold-calling and increasing pension allowances, and he is passionate about improving outcomes for savers and retirees.
Tom is regularly quoted in national print and broadcast media, including appearances on a weekly BBC Radio London personal finance slot. He has also appeared multiple times on BBC’s MoneyBox as an expert, as well as BBC Radio, BBC News, Sky News and LBC.
26 October 2016
Pensions, death and taxes“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” So said Benjamin Franklin, the sixth President of the United States, in a letter written following the establishment of the Constitution.
In pensions, death used to be followed by a huge 55% tax hit on any money you left behind to your loved ones. However, rules introduced...
20 October 2016
Tax relief: The difference between pensions and ISAsStand aside pensions – ISAs are the new kid in town. That seemed to be the conclusion of a report published by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), an independent body set up to hold the Treasury to account, last week.
And the evidence since 2010 certainly seems to back that assertion. George Osborne, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer...
12 October 2016
Choose your ISA carefullyFormer Chancellor George Osborne’s Lifetime ISA looks set to become part of the long-term savings landscape after the Government belatedly published draft legislation setting out how the product will work.
Investors can now be fairly confident the new vehicle will launch as planned in April next year. It also seems the Lifetime ISA, at least...
6 October 2016
Pensions vs property: which wins the retirement income war?On the retirement income battlefield, one war has waged more fiercely than any other – pensions versus property. Property evangelists insist you’d be better off sticking your savings in bricks and mortar, while pensions nerds steadfastly back the tax-advantaged retirement vehicle.
But who is right? And what should you consider when deciding whether...
6 October 2016
Pensions – the impact of starting earlyYou’ll often hear financial experts extol the virtues of saving early and often for your retirement. But what you might not be aware of is the magic of compound growth, described by Albert Einstein no less as the ‘eighth wonder of the world’.
‘He who understands it, earns it,’ said the father of the theory of relativity. ‘He who doesn’t…pays it.’
B...
28 September 2016
Could pension tax relief cuts spur VCT growth? Tax relief on the block?The Sword of Damocles once again hangs over pension tax relief. Investors are by now well used to the usual pre-Budget/Autumn Statement newspaper speculation over the future of the UK’s current system, whereby contributions and investment growth are tax-free and withdrawals are taxed at the saver’s marginal rate.
Former...
7 September 2016
The new pension advice allowance – is it right for you?“Should I pay for professional advice or go it alone?” Even the savviest investor will likely ask themselves this question as they approach the complex world of retirement planning.
While many will decide they feel confident enough to invest their money without the help of a regulated adviser, some will feel they need steering in the right...
6 September 2016
Property funds saga – where are we now?A swathe of post-Brexit vote property fund suspensions in June and July frayed the nerves of investors, with some commentators drawing doomsday comparisons with the Great Financial Crisis of 2007/08. After all, commercial property was one of the first asset classes to feel the strain six years ago as the global financial system creaked under the...
31 August 2016
Shifting pensions landscapeWhen former Chancellor George Osborne announced plans to allow savers aged 55 and over unfettered access to their pension pot from April 2015, nobody was quite sure how people would react. Could they be tempted to splurge their retirement pot on flash cars? Or would they pause for thought and consider the implications a spending spree would have on...
18 August 2016
The pension transfer advice conundrumThe pension freedoms have reshaped the UK’s retirement landscape and opened up a plethora of retirement planning opportunities and risks. The reforms, introduced in April 2015, have proved hugely popular, with savers accessing billions of pounds flexibly and annuity sales plummeting.
However, while the majority of those over the age of 55 in...
