All Covenant articles – Page 7
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News
Alternative strategies could wipe out UK’s £190bn DB deficit
On the go: Alternative approaches to scheme funding and investments could eliminate the UK’s current £190bn defined benefit pension deficit, according to new analysis by PwC.
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NewsGreen pressured to save Arcadia pension schemes
On the go: Philip Green is being pressured to “make good” on promises to 10,000 members of the Arcadia pension scheme as his retail empire is on the brink of filing for administration, which would leave the scheme in the Pension Protection Fund.
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Pension scheme strategies not fit for ‘purpose’
On the go: The number of trustees having to alter their scheme’s long-term plans in the past year suggests pension scheme strategies are “not fit for purpose”, according to new research.
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PPF reserves could be ‘wiped out’ by one or two big claims
Pension Protection Fund chief executive Oliver Morley has warned that the lifeboat’s reserves could be wiped out by just a few large claims, while downplaying the risk of a post-Covid run of small-scheme claims.
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HMRC’s leapfrog on insolvencies to hinder PPF recoveries
Government changes to prioritise the payment of insolvent businesses’ tax bills at the expense of other creditors could reduce recoveries by the Pension Protection Fund and adversely impact levy payers, according to the lifeboat.
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TPR issues guidance on protecting schemes from employer distress
New guidance for trustees on protecting their schemes from employer distress stresses the need for robust protections and integrated risk management.
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Most DB schemes do not meet regulator’s fast-track requirements
On the go: Seventy per cent of defined benefit schemes fall short of the Pensions Regulator’s ‘fast-track’ approach as proposed in its new DB funding code, according to analysis from Hymans Robertson.
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Majority of DB schemes’ recovery plans on track before Covid
Data crunch: Only a third of defined benefit schemes extended their recovery plan end date in 2019, but pandemic storms are set to see pension funds entering choppy waters, with insolvency looming for some sponsors and trustees being asked to make tough decisions.
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SNP MPs table amendments to tackle Section 75 conundrum
On the go: Four Scottish National party MPs have tabled an amendment to the pension schemes bill in a bid to solve the problem of Section 75 debt falling due on small, unincorporated employers.
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Covid leaves Northern Ireland Water deficit recovery in rough sea
Northern Ireland Water could have to pay an additional £4.6m a year in deficit repair contributions to its scheme, but uncertainty about how Covid-19 has impacted its investment and ongoing negotiations with trustees makes it hard to gauge its recovery plan.
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Regulator unveils superfunds guidance for trustees
The Pensions Regulator has published new guidance for defined benefit schemes transferring into a commercial consolidation 'superfund', placing the burden of proof on trustees to show that their plan is in members' best interests.
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Aon warns USS consultation could confuse employers
Aon has warned that the consultation document presented by the trustee of the Universities Superannuation Scheme will be of only limited use to employers, and may leave some unable to make vital decisions.
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TPR’s new guidance on mandatory AE reporting causes confusion
Updated guidance from the Pensions Regulator will see the 90-day limit for reporting late payments becoming mandatory from April 2021. However, the wording of the guidance has caused some confusion, with schemes being asked to make the adjustment for January 1.
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Mercer launches DB master trust as demand for consolidation increases
Mercer has launched a new defined benefit master trust promising sponsors enhanced governance and economies of scale, amid an accelerating trend towards consolidation and outsourced solutions, with pensions minister Guy Opperman stating that “bigger is better”.
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News
USS announces ‘challenging’ valuation consultation
The Universities Superannuation Scheme has launched a consultation with employers over its 2020 valuation, which at worst could present a £17.9bn deficit. But it faces a fight with the University and College Union, which said it had no confidence in the “needlessly cautious” approach taken by the USS.
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PodcastsPodcast: DB schemes could be ‘doomed to failure’ by new funding code
Podcast: Defined benefit schemes could be “doomed to failure by measures that are designed to help them”, says Baroness Ros Altmann of the proposed new funding code. She is joined by SEI’s client strategy director Alistair Jones to discuss that issue, as well as the challenges faced by master trusts, and the increasingly bizarre McCloud remedy that, though intended to tackle age discrimination, has been accused of age discrimination.
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DB schemes with ‘clean bill of health’ before pandemic
Data crunch: High levels of hedging, integrated approaches to risk management, long-term targets and clearly defined journey plans all made for sepia-tinted tranche 14 valuations.
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Experts query whether £31m offer will satisfy TPR in Box Clever case
ITV has put forward an initial offer of £31m to the Pensions Regulator of financial support for the struggling Box Clever Pension Scheme, following an eight-year courtroom battle.
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DB schemes should beware lockdown ‘inertia’
On the go: Three in four defined benefit schemes say they have taken no material action to change their investment strategies or journey plans as a result of Covid-19, but a new report from LCP warns that “inertia” could prove damaging.
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Threat of action by TPR settles sponsor dispute
On the go: The Pensions Regulator has settled a case in which a pension scheme was placed at risk by an organisational restructure, with the threat of action being sufficient to force an agreement.