21 September 2012
Brewin Dolphin thought hard about supporting the SoS campaign to extend cash ISAs, when invited to join in by the Mail on Sunday. We are an equity centric house, managing over £25 billion on behalf of private investors, predominantly in equities. We have always believed that you are never too young or too small to invest part of your savings in stocks and shares which, in the FTSE All-Share when you include their dividends, have achieved a total return of 12.5% on an annualised basis since 1970, beating cash savings almost invariably for over forty years.
But of course the law is wrong to restrict cash savers from the same tax incentives as equity investors, everyone should be encouraged to save as much as possible on a fair basis, that is suitable for their circumstances and time horizons. Hopefully one day as the cash pile builds up – many of those savers will feel the time is right to switch some or all of their ISA to a stocks and shares version and then invest in some great British companies – George Osborne should consider that.
ENDS