Watchdog urges retirement savings action The Government expects that state pension reforms and its landmark programme to automatically place people into workplace pensions will reduce the potential long-term spending liability. Around 8m people are expected to save for the first time or save more because of automatic enrolment into workplace pensions, which has started with larger companies. But in reality, the long-term costs for Government remain "highly uncertain," the report warned. An estimated 10.7m people, equating to two-fifths of the working age population, are not saving enough to get the income they want to live comfortably on in their old age. The NAO is concerned that without a "whole system view," there is a lack of coherence and accountability. This in turn creates a risk that the Government's efforts will not do enough to increase people's retirement savings. The Treasury leads overall savings strategy and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) oversees workplace saving. The NAO also highlighted a lack of a formal published strategy to help change employers' attitudes towards older workers. Amyas Morse, head of the NAO, said: "What is needed is for the Government to take a more holistic view of its portfolio of interventions, how they interact and their relative costs and benefits. It should be more active and effective in influencing citizens to save more and plan more effectively for retirement, and in seeking to change the negative attitudes of some employers towards older workers. Tom McPhail, head of pensions research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: ""We would like to see a stronger savings culture in the UK. We believe there is an opportunity for the Treasury to take a lead in coordinating efforts between public bodies and the financial sector, to increase savings and to reduce our collective reliance on borrowing our way out of successive financial crises.