Mr O’Brien told the autumn conference of the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) that the system will complement the current pensions scheme, IFAonline.co.uk reports.

He called for all involved in personal accounts to do their best to promote the system, saying that there would be those who argue that “it does not pay to save”.

And he claimed that automatic enrolment in personal accounts “will make it easier to save – in particular for those on low or moderate incomes”.

Employers will make minimum contributions under the personal account scheme and the accompanying tax relief will make saving “rewarding”, he added.

Earlier today, Paul Myners, chairman of the Personal Accounts Delivery Authority, said that personal accounts would not be used to take business away from workplace pensions, the Press Association reports.

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