jet II,
What you leave out of your criticism of Andrew Hallam, is compounding.
8% compounded over 25 years works out to a lot more than 8% profit. And it will be a lot more than any managed fund or average IFA can do.
That is Warren Buffetts advice too, if I believe AH.
My 300k invested in Generali over 8 years has made a whopping 1%. Don't go anywhere near the likes of Generali/FP/zurich even as recommended by nice trustable UK trained/qualified/experienced IFA. Nice blokes. Bad maths.