Pensions Weekly Update – 1 March 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.

The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has launched a campaign to ensure that pension trustees are complying with their climate change and environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting duties. TPR has said that it will check that trustees of schemes with 100 or more members are providing a correct website link in their scheme returns to their statement of investment principles (SIP) and implementation statement. It will undertake a review of a cross section of SIPs and implementation statements in the summer and share those results publicly. Large schemes with £1 billion or more of assets, along with authorised master trusts and collective defined contribution schemes, are required to disclose and report in line with regulations that implement the recommendations of the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). TPR plans to publish a statement on TCFD compliance in the spring. See our #how2dopensions quick guides for a reminder of pension trustees’ duties in relation to the preparation of a SIP and an implementation statement, TCFD reporting and ESG.
The Pensions Administration Standards Association (PASA) has published guidance on being data ready for buy-ins and buyouts, suggesting some quick wins for bringing data up to date. PASA has also produced a white paper called “EAdmin – Focusing on a Saver-Centric Experience”. In 2022, PASA’s e-admin working group conducted 25 interviews with third-party administrators, professional trustees, in-house administration teams, advisers and the Pension Protection Fund to discuss issues around e-admin, artificial intelligence and use of technology. PASA notes that the key outcome of those interviews was “a strong desire to deliver a better saver experience”. The white paper sets out findings of the interviews undertaken and includes guidance leveraging developments in other parts of financial services to deliver better outcomes for savers.
If you find our #how2dopensions quick guides on SIPs, TCFD and ESG useful, check out our other pensions quick guides in our pensions thought leadership library.
The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) deadline of 31 March 2023 is fast approaching. For a reminder of the PPF's headlines and essential deadlines, see our January insight.
Finally, watch out for our Spring Hot Topics in Pensions, which will be issued in the next few days.