The trade body wants Alistair Darling to take the first steps towards creating a National Savings Strategy, claiming that although there are incentivised saving schemes already in place, they do not allow individuals enough room to save for life.

Commenting, TISA director general Tony Vine-Lott said: “The reality of the credit crunch is hitting home and more and more people are recognising the importance of saving or paying off debt.

“The Chancellor has the ideal opportunity to build on this momentum and encourage people to save for their long term financial security.

“But in order to achieve this we need a holistic savings framework that encourages regular saving and can reflect the different financial needs of an individual throughout their life.”

According to TISA, ISAs are, “an excellent example of a modern day savings vehicle,” but improvements are needed to make them better for the nations savers.

Improvements suggested by TISA include the introduction of a workplace ISA, which would allow employer contributions, the decision for Child Trust Funds to become ISAs on maturity, and the ability to transfer 25 per cent of tax free pension drawdown into an ISA, in addition to the annual ISA subscription limit.

Mr Vine-Lott adds: “Taking these steps would be far more beneficial than merely raising the ISA annual allowance.

“They would make people think carefully about the importance of committing to savings on a life long basis.

“Similarly I would like to see a commitment from the Chancellor to make ISAs the savings mainstay of the future,” he concluded.

© Fair Investment Company Ltd