News – Page 18
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ArticleITV ordered to offer financial support to Box Clever pension scheme by TPR
Following an eight year long legal challenge against The Pensions Regulator (TPR), television broadcasting organisation ITV has been given a six month deadline to provide financial support for the Box Clever pension scheme.Box Clever was a joint venture formed in 2000 between ITV and Carmelite; employees were transferred to the ...
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ArticleSouthbank Capital Limited director fined £12,800 by Pensions Regulator
Director and shareholder of Southbank Capital Limited, Michael Woolley, has been handed a £10,000 fine, and ordered to pay a further £2,800 in costs, for failing to hand over information and documents requested by The Pensions Regulator (TPR).TPR requested that Woolley provide information about investments relating to money and assets ...
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ArticleHow will the Spring Budget 2020 affect pay and benefits?
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak delivered the Spring Budget speech to the House of Commons on Wednesday 11 March 2020. Below is a summary of the key announcements that could impact pay and benefits strategies:National insurance contribution threshold to rise to £9,500 from April 2020National living wage projected to ...
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ArticleTapered annual allowance threshold for pension tax relief to increase by £90,000
Budget 2020: Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced today (11 March 2020) that that the tapered annual allowance threshold for pensions tax relief will be increased by £90,000.This means that from 2020/2021, the threshold income will be £200,000; those employees that earn below this level will not be affected by the tapered ...
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ArticleTPR launches consultation on DB pension scheme funding
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has published a consultation on a revised code of practice for defined benefit (DB) scheme funding.The results of the consultation will enable TPR to set a benchmark for good standards of compliance, expected to come into force at the end of 2021. These will be implemented ...
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ArticleThe Pensions Regulator urged to address financial risks associated with climate change
In the coming months, the government has asked that The Pensions Regulator (TPR) set out a strategy to deal with the financial risks associated with climate change. In an open letter to Charles Counsell, chief executive at TPR, Pete Searle, director of private pensions and arm’s length bodies partnership at ...
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ArticleOne in 10 believe their pension scheme investments align with ESG best practice
Less than one in 10 (9%) employers believe that their pension scheme investments align with environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors, according to research by Howden Employee Benefits and Wellbeing.Rules introduced in October 2019 mean that pension scheme trustees are to required to outline their policies on financially material investment ...
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ArticleFormer head of Yately Industries for the Disabled jailed for pensions fraud
The former head of charity organisation Yately Industries for the Disabled, Patrick McLarry, has been jailed for five years for defrauding its pension scheme.Investigations by The Pensions Regulator (TPR) discovered that between 2012 and 2013, during his tenure as the director of VerdePlanet, the corporate trustee of the Yately Industries ...
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ArticleTPR announces new measures to improve standards of trusteeship and protect savers
In its response to its Future of Trusteeship and Governance consultation, The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has announced that it will be taking new measures to protect pension savers and improve member outcomes.The consultation, which took place between July and September 2019, received 114 responses from a mix of layperson and ...
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ArticleMerchant Navy Officers Pension Fund completes £1.6 billion buy-in agreement
The Merchant Navy Officers Pension Fund (MNOPF), worth approximately £3 billion, has reached a £1.6 billion buy-in agreement with Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC).The buy-in, announced today (10 February 2020), covers members affected by fund’s longevity swap, which was completed in 2014, was structured as an insurance agreement between the trustee ...
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ArticleAWH Group Pension Scheme completes £2.3m buy-out
The AWH Group Pension Scheme has completed a bulk annuity buy-out transaction worth £2.3m. The AWH Group Pension Scheme provides for employees of specialist textile manufacturer AW Hainswoth; the transaction was insured through Aviva, and was completed by K3 Advisory and H&C Consulting Actuaries.Through the process of this buy-out, the ...
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ArticleThe Pensions Regulator confirms £2,000 fine for Financial Conduct Authority Pension Plan
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has confirmed that it issued a £2,000 fine to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Pension Plan, due to non-compliance with chair’s statement regulations. After updating its penalty policies in December 2019, TPR confirmed that non-compliant chair’s statements are subject to a mandatory fine of between £500 ...
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Article£2.23 billion withdrawn using flexible pension rules in quarter four of 2019
In quarter four of 2019, 327,000 individuals made a total of 828,000 pension withdrawals, amounting to £2.23 billion overall, according to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).Analysis by HMRC found that this was an 18% increase from the £1.9 billion withdrawn in the same period of 2018, and a 24% increase ...
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Article81% want more transparency over pension investments
More than 80% of consumers want transparency about what companies their pensions are invested in, according to research by PensionBee. The online pension provider's study of more than 2,000 customers of its largest fund found a consensus among how much UK workers want to know where their money is being ...
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ArticleGovernment will continue state pension for UK nationals living in EU after Brexit
In a document published on 24 January 2020, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) confirmed that UK citizens working in the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland will continue to have access to benefits and pensions despite the UK leaving the EU. The DWP promised that there will be ...
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ArticleDirector of accountancy firm fined for misleading pensions regulator
Former accountant Paul Rewrie has been ordered to pay £4,987 after pleading guilty to knowingly or recklessly providing false or misleading information to The Pensions Regulator (TPR).Rewrie was the director of accountancy firm PR Finance and Development, and was hired by a Cambridge-based organisation to enrol its employees into a ...
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ArticleFormer BHS owner ordered to pay £9.5 million into affected pension schemes
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has ordered Dominic Chappell, director and majority shareholder of the organisation that bought BHS, to pay £9.5 million into BHS pensions schemes, following the collapse of the high street retailer. In January 2018, TPR concluded that a series of factors during the collapse were materially detrimental ...
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ArticlePensions Schemes Bill introduced to House of Lords
The Pensions Schemes Bill, originally confirmed in the Queen's Speech on 14 October 2019, and reintroduced on 19 December 2019, has been introduced to the House of Lords this week. The Commons Library Briefing, published on 7 January 2020, stated that the introduction of the Pensions Schemes Bill, which will ...
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Article11,000 retirees to lose £70 of state pension per week from April 2020
According to a Freedom of Information request made to the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) by Steve Webb, policy director at insurance organisation Royal London, an estimated 11,000 retirees are set to face a significant cut to their state pension from April 2010.This is the result of the abolition ...
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ArticleThree-fifths note increased interest in ESG factors following 2019 policy changes
Almost three-fifths (57%) of respondents stated that, although there is an increased interest in environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns around pension schemes following recent legislative changes, no changes have been made as of yet, according to research by the Society of Pension Professionals (SPP). In 2019, new regulations were ...