It is incomprehensible for a department with such a potential impact on future spending and prosperity.
On the plus side, we now have a state-educated woman in the role. So I wish former children’s TV presenter Esther McVey well. Her experience of speaking to five-year-olds should come in handy when trying to explain the importance of pensions to some of her cabinet colleagues.
Prenuptial agreements
City trader Julie Arnold saw her spouse walk off with half her £5.45m fortune, even though they had no children, had been married just four years and he had an affair. Evidence, surely, that cheats can win.
I have seen suggestions that this case underlines the need for prenuptial agreements.
But these have no official legal standing in England and Wales, even though they can carry evidential weight in court.
In Scotland, the oldest marriage contract dates to 1281, and they have been common since the 14th century. As long as they are fair and reasonable at the time they were signed they are regarded as legally binding – though it seems they have never been tested in court.
Surely a change in the law south of the border is needed to bring England and Wales in line with trendsetting Scots.
Tony Hazell writes for the Daily Mail's Money Mail section
