§ Mrs. Gillian ShephardTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement about the uprating of public service pensions from 1989.
§ Mr. BrookePublic service pensioners were affected by the understatement in the retail prices index announced in December 1987. In my written answer of 18 December, at column845–6, I made it clear that, in order to ensure that these pensioners suffered no continuing loss, levels of public service pensions from April 1989 would be what they would have been if the error in the RPI had not occurred.
Under the Social Security Pensions Act 1975, the Treasury is required to increase public service pensions in line with state earnings-related pensions. In the forthcoming Pensions Increase (Review) Order public service pensions will therefore be uprated by the 5.9 per cent. increase announced yesterday by the Secretary of State for Social Security for SERPS. In consequence, they will have the value from April 1989 that they would have had if the RPI error had not occurred.