All Irwin Mitchell articles – Page 2

  • Podcasts

    Podcast: 'Crystal ball-gazing' makes ethical investment tough for trustees

    2020-06-05T00:00:00Z

    Trustees aiming to make ethical investment decisions can find it tough to justify them without recourse to a crystal ball, as the legal requirements are ill-defined, says Irwin Mitchell’s pensions partner Penny Cogher. In this episode she’s joined by independent consultant and long-time pensions expert Malcolm McLean for a discussion covering capital-backed endgame deals, the complications of new insolvency laws, and some morally dubious LGPS investments.

  • News

    Unfunded public pensions to take £150bn hit from Covid-19

    2020-05-15T00:00:00Z

    Overinflated estimates of UK economic performance could strain the affordability of unfunded public sector pensions, according to new estimates, with the government forced to weigh the continued security of public sector workers’ retirement against a £150bn tax burden on future generations.

  • News

    HSBC ahead of curve with TCFD compliance

    2020-03-23T00:00:00Z

    As the government seeks powers to mandate pension schemes to disclose their climate change risks, the HSBC Bank (UK) Pension Scheme is already on its second report under the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures.

  • News

    Charge cap could be a barrier to CDC, experts fear

    2020-03-13T00:00:00Z

    A collective defined contribution pension scheme for Royal Mail employees is inching closer to the starting gate, but an amendment to the pension schemes bill to impose a charge cap could derail other nascent CDCs from ever getting off the ground, according to experts.

  • Penny Cogher
    Opinion

    Auto-enrolment can help solve care crisis

    2020-03-10T00:00:00Z

    Our ability to support our elderly reaches tipping point by 2029 unless the government takes decisive action now.

  • News

    Social care crisis: is auto-enrolment the answer?

    2020-02-27T00:00:00Z

    Auto-enrolment-style contributions could hold the key to solving the UK’s growing social care crisis, according to the sponsors of a report into the funding shortfall for care in later life.

  • News

    Pension schemes to share scams intelligence online

    2020-02-18T00:00:00Z

    The Pension Scams Industry Group is working with anti-fraud organisation Cifas to launch a network of open-source information on suspicious companies and pension arrangements, which specialists say could be an important step in bringing scams under control.

  • News

    ESG amendments to give govt ‘unprecedented new powers’

    2020-02-12T00:00:00Z

    The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association has warned that government bodies will have “unprecedented new powers” to interfere in pension scheme investment strategies if an amendment to the pension schemes bill is passed.

  • News

    Post Office workers set to receive scheme surplus spoils

    2020-01-16T00:00:00Z

    Members of the Post Office section of the Royal Mail Pension Plan may be in line to receive a windfall, with the trustee considering how to share a £28m surplus as the scheme moves to partial buyout.

  • News

    Trustees receive positive sign from ombudsman on scam checks

    2019-12-19T00:00:00Z

    Trustees and administrators must maintain the utmost vigilance against scammers, industry experts warn, despite a Pensions Ombudsman determination on a £367,601 loss to fraudsters favouring the ceding pension scheme.

  • News

    Johnson lambasts billion-pound costs of LGPS

    2019-10-31T00:00:00Z

    The stellar investment returns of the Local Government Pension Scheme over the past decade may be overplayed, according to a leading expert from a right-wing think tank, who also controversially claimed that the scheme offers poor value for money.

  • News

    Workplace DC ‘should favour venture capital despite risks’

    2019-09-25T00:00:00Z

    On the go: Workplace savers may be missing out on opportunities for better returns if their pension schemes avoid venture capital, a report published on Wednesday has claimed.

  • News

    Skeleton staff levels pose hidden dangers for pension funds

    2019-09-19T00:00:00Z

    On the go: Smaller pension schemes may be underestimating the risks posed to their funds by trustee governance gaps and over-reliance on key individuals.

  • News

    Britvic reaches interim agreement on CPI/RPI linking

    2019-09-05T00:00:00Z

    Soft drinks manufacturer Britvic has reached an interim agreement with the trustees of its defined benefit pension scheme over controversial plans to switch pension increases based on the retail prices index to the lower consumer prices index.

  • News

    Britvic seeks court approval for RPI/CPI switch

    2019-08-12T00:00:00Z

    Soft drinks manufacturer Britvic is the latest business to attempt to switch the basis for its defined benefit pension increases from the retail price index to the consumer price index, with other companies reputedly queuing up to take legal advice on this very point.

  • News

    DOIs: Could a cup of coffee lead to £1m DB fine?

    2019-05-03T00:00:00Z

    A lack of clarity on proposed new legislation means a meeting over a cup of coffee to discuss a corporate transaction could cost an employer up to £1m in civil fines if a declaration of intent is not made in advance, according to law firm Pinsent Masons.

  • Features

    AkzoNobel valuation results in £550m Q1 funding call

    2019-05-01T00:00:00Z

    Paint manufacturing giant AkzoNobel has contributed €639m (£548.8m) into its pension schemes in the first quarter of 2019 alone, after a triennial valuation increased the company’s funding obligations beyond its previous projections.

  • News

    ACA and Royal London call for radical simplification of DB rights

    2018-11-20T00:00:00Z

    Consumers and employers could reap substantial benefits if the complex patchwork of defined benefit pension rights could be radically simplified, according to a recent policy paper.

  • Features

    Leicestershire fund boosts death benefit security for children

    2018-01-31T00:00:00Z

    Leicestershire County Council Pension Fund has introduced additional requirements for legal guardians responsible for children’s pensions and death grants, where the guardian’s nomination has been the subject of dispute.

  • News

    Fujitsu could see more strikes in jobs and pensions dispute

    2017-10-31T00:00:00Z

    Union Unite is preparing to reballot employees at ICT company Fujitsu on strike action, in a long-running dispute that – among other things – involves a change to the ICL defined benefit section’s late retirement factor.