My plan at 55
Draw 25% tax free on a pension I have which isnt live in respect of paying in atm. and pay a debt plan off ( hopefully at a discount as theyve been sold on a few times) that will save 5k over 5 years from the administration costs as that's how long will be left. Have a few quid left to do a bit around the house a nice holiday and a bit on a newer car (even on the tick as they will want sales at interest free payments after this bug). Hope still have a bit of dough about me for a few luxuries. All being well carry on working. My mortgage ends 5 years later when I'm 60 and a half.
Again as long as I can work I prob will. The bonus is knowing that if needs be I can draw down on what's left. Hopefully I can work till pension age then if I can jack in work or downgrade my wages and be comfortable then I will only pay 20% tax not 40% on any drawdowns. Although I also have a work place pension ongoing. Once I get to 55 and paid debt plan some of the spare ages I might put into that. I dont fancy getting an annuity as you only get 30 days to change your mind and any receipts count as earnings anyway. I know it can all be deferred but how much extra do you really need.
I know it's not the best plan financially but I feel at least I've got a goal to aim for.
Having been through the wringer of repossession 30 years ago and making ends meet to most degree from then I am truly looking forward to having some dough about me. Not having to look at the price tag for general things is something I've never been able to do.
Amen.

Cryst, a few things to consider. Please bear in mind that I know very little about your circumstances, so perhaps not all relevant.

With your initial tax-free withdrawal at 55, I would suggest drawing out only what you need/want (to clear debt, home improvements, new car etc), as opposed to all of it. Many people withdraw all if it just because they can. The mistake here is that they are taking money out of an environment where it is invested and growing tax free into a current account where it is doing nothing. You’re likely to be better off leaving it invested in the pension and drawing the rest out later when you need it. Unless you are using the pension to buy an annuity, there is no obligation to take the full 25% in one go.

You refer to drawing down if needs be. I presume you’re referring to flexi access drawdown here? If so, its important to be aware that once you with withdraw £1 of flexible income (such as drawdown), you will trigger the ‘Money Purchase Annual Allowance’ (MPAA). This means that your annual pension contribution limit will instantly reduce to £4,000 gross per tax year. If it’s your intention to increase your contributions after the debt has cleared, this might cause you a small problem.

You mention that annuity income counts as earnings. This is same as any taxable withdrawal from a pension. The same would apply if you were receiving income from drawdown.

Rather than the 30-day cooling off period, the bigger concern around annuities at present is that the low interest rate environment combined with increasing longevity is driving down rates. They are at an all time low.

To give you an idea, the best rate today for a healthy 65-year-old, on the most basic shape (no inflation linking, no guarantee period, single life) will get a 4.785% rate. Meaning a £100,000 pension will buy a guaranteed income of just £4,785 per annum.

With regards to paying only 20% tax rather than 40%, one of the key benefits of using flexi access drawdown is that you can tailor your income to suit your circumstances. Therefore, you could draw a small amount, if you wish, which keeps your total income within say the 20% basic rate threshold. With an annuity it pays a fixed amount which you cannot ever change once it has been set up – thus in your example possibly paying 40% whilst you are still working.

As a general rule, if you have any, it’s usually best to spend your non pension savings first and try to leave your pension until last. There are income tax and possible IHT benefits to this.

Additionally, if you’re still working and have enough income to cover your outgoings, you’re best off deferring any withdrawals. The pension will have more time to grow and it will buy you more income in future when you actually need it to replace your earnings. There’s no point withdrawing income, which will be taxed, if you don’t need it. Leave it invested to accumulate in a tax advantaged environment for as long as you can.

Non pension related, interesting to see that Hargreaves Lansdown (largest direct to customer fund platform), shares shot up 8.6% yesterday, the best performer in the FTSE 100.

This is off the announcement that they picked up 94,000 new clients, with a record £4 billion of new investments in the first four months of 2020.

Good to see that many are making use of this unique opportunity to buy investments on the cheap. Markets have recovered by around 30% since its lowest on 23rd March, so there's still time to get in.

I would argue the markets rebounded too far to quickly, fuelled by Governments flooding the markets with liquidity. Corporate earnings this year and perhaps next will be decimated. Market tends to look 12/18 months ahead. Long term charts suggest Ftse could test 2008 low of sub 4000. If it does that would be the time to get the wheel barrow out.
As for the view that the stock market is a mugs game, it certainly is for day traders. Stats would suggest that less that 10% day traders make money over an extended period of time. However those that take a longer term view and do a little research can make money. There are many well respected posters on financial bulletin boards and Twitter that have been around for decades. Their views are definitely worth following. However they are out numbered 10 fold by the pump and dump merchants.
I have been a successful buy and hold investor for over 30 years. It is certainly worth the effort.

Cash is what people feel comfortable with. It does depreciate it's worth but it's there and accessible and the losses are minimal in the small picture. The big picture of the future has been shown to be very short for some recently, sadly. In the case of cash familiarity breeds comfort not contempt. I mean bank accounts etc not just on the hip.