All News articles – Page 244
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How to choose a professional trustee for your scheme
Any other business: A regulatory burden that has proved too much even for some professional trustees and a challenging investment environment mean running a scheme has arguably never been harder. So should schemes appoint professional trustees, and what qualities do they need to look for?
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Brexit speech calms markets but leaves questions over ECJ cases
Prime Minister Theresa May this week laid out the government’s plans for Brexit, prompting questions from the pensions industry over the role of EU law in UK pensions over the longer term.
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Increase caps add to rules lottery amid inflation spike
The consumer price index spiked by almost half a per cent in the year to December 2016, narrowing the ‘rules lottery’ gap between the official inflation measure and the retail price index.
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Cost scrutiny intensifies as TTF calls for select committee inquiry
The Work and Pensions Select Committee has been asked to launch a fresh inquiry into charges levied on pension savings, as campaigners warned price inefficiencies reach far beyond investment costs.
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Industry finds no easy answers in dividends v deficits debate
Most FTSE 100 companies could clear their pension deficits in less than two years by withholding dividends, new research says. Experts have called for more focus on the contrast between dividend payments and deficit repair contributions, though others say there is no one-size-fits-all solution.
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Johnson Service Group adds £1.5m on top of recovery plan
Textile rental provider Johnson Service Group has committed to paying £1.5m to its defined benefit scheme following the £8.25m sale of its dry cleaning business to Timpson Group.
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Contribution hike prompts pension protest at Bangor University
Public sector union Unison has protested against Bangor University’s plans to raise pension contributions, but despite the demurral, changes will be going ahead this month.
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TPR bares its teeth with first mastertrust fines
The Pensions Regulator has imposed its first fines against mastertrusts for failing to complete a chair’s statement, as it signals a hard approach to dealing with defined contribution administration lapses.
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Berkshire saves 600 hours with automated data exchange
The Royal County of Berkshire Pension Fund saved an estimated 604.1 hours of administrative work over six months, and ended its struggles with updating member data by introducing an automated data exchange.
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Royal Mail closure consultation could see strike action
Royal Mail Group has begun consulting with active members on closing its section of the Royal Mail Pension Plan, spurring the threat of industrial action from unions if the sponsor does not react positively to their concerns.
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DB outlook 2017: Investment problems remain as deficits dip
Defined benefit deficits worsened during December to an aggregate IAS 19 deficit of £434bn, as experts added sustained low interest rates and cash flow problems to their concerns for pension funds over the course of 2017.
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Select committee: Scare negligent employers into funding with 'nuclear' fines
The Work and Pensions Select Committee has called for “nuclear deterrent” fines – tripling the amount currently payable – to be levied against employers seen to be shirking pension responsibilities, in its report into defined benefit pensions.
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Push for simpler DC bulk transfers receives industry approval
Experts have welcomed a consultation on transferring members between defined contribution schemes without their consent, launched to simplify the process and help achieve scale in the DC sector.
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From BHS to Uber: The events that shaped pensions in 2016
Year in review: Having almost grown used to new regulations and system overhauls, 2016 managed to top (almost) everything, keeping the pensions industry on its toes. We have picked out some of the articles that accompanied this year’s turning points for pensions.
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Defaults and dashboards: Top DC and AE stories from 2016
Year in review: The battle to make defined contribution a safer place for members proved to be an uphill struggle in 2016, as schemes, regulators and even the police were trying to keep up with developments in the market.
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Discrimination, indexation and tax relief's survival: Top law and regulation stories from 2016
Year in review: As if Brexit didn’t pose enough challenges, regulators, lawyers and two successive pensions ministers have had a lot on their plate in 2016.
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From RAAs to hedging: Top DB and derisking stories from 2016
Year in review: 2016 was the year the dam finally broke and defined benefit funding issues jumped into the mainstream news, with stories such as Tata Steel and BHS’s funding woes striking a chord.
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High charges could affect £26bn of scheme assets, review warns
The Financial Conduct Authority and Department for Work and Pensions’ Independent Project Board has found that about £26bn of pension scheme assets are potentially facing charges of 1 per cent or higher.
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2017 AE review will ignore adequacy but include charge cap
The Department for Work and Pensions has announced the scope of its 2017 review of auto-enrolment, including a reconsideration of the charge cap on defined contribution default funds.
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BSPS nears compromise deal as Tata announces closure plan
Tata Steel UK is to consult with employees on closing the British Steel Pension Scheme to future accrual, as part of an agreement with trade unions aimed at safeguarding the future of its UK steelworks.