§ Mr. BoatengTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what comparisons he has made between the pension arrangements for full-time immigration adjudicators and judicial office holders of a similar status; and what plans he has to amend these arrangements. [30463]
Mr. John M. TaylorThe Judicial Pensions and Retirement Act 1993, which came into force on 31 March 1995, established uniform pension arrangements for all full-time judicial office holders, including immigration adjudicators, appointed on or after that date. Immigration adjudicators in office before that date continue to be pensionable under their previous terms, which differ in some respects from those of most other judicial office holders, subject to an option to elect to join the new pension scheme. The accrual rate for pension benefits for immigration adjudicators who exercise their option to join the new scheme is twice that of their previous arrangements and therefore this option constitutes a significant potential enhancement to the pension terms they accepted on appointment. The Lord Chancellor has no plans to amend further the pension arrangements for immigration adjudicators.