Pensions Weekly Update – 25 January 2023

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Here is our weekly summary of key legal and regulatory developments relevant to occupational pension schemes that you might have missed, with links for further information.

Laura Trott, the Minister for Pensions, has written to the Work and Pensions Committee in response to Stephen Timms’ letter asking for information and/or action in relation to the state pension age review; the compensation cap for members of the Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS); and the information provided to people with guaranteed minimum pensions (GMPs) following the switch to the single-tier state pension. In relation to the state pension age, she said that the reports prepared by Baroness Neville-Rolfe and the Government Actuary would be published in due course. In relation to the FAS compensation cap, she noted that the cap applies across the board, and is, therefore, not age-discriminatory in the way that the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) compensation cap was found to be. There are, therefore, no plans to remove the FAS compensation cap. In response to a question around uprating GMPs, she said that the government has asked The Pensions Regulator to include information in its monthly bulletins to pension schemes so that they can alert affected members to the fact that part of their GMP, which was traditionally treated as being uprated by the state, would no longer receive state increases.
The Pensions Dashboards Programme has published information on the work being undertaken to ensure that consumers using pensions dashboards will be protected.
The Financial Conduct Authority has announced plans for a thematic review to consider how financial adviser firms are delivering retirement income advice and the quality of consumer outcomes. Among other things, the review will assess how the market has responded to changes stemming from the 2015 “freedom and choice” reforms and how the recent period of high price inflation has impacted consumer needs.
See our latest summary of the PPF's headlines and deadlines in relation to its 2023-24 levy. Please get in touch with your usual firm contact if you would like assistance to put in place or recertify a contingent asset.

If you would like specific advice on any of these issues, or on anything else, please contact a member of our Pensions team.