§ Mr. Peter Bottomleyasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the accumulated occupational pension fund commitment of local authorities in England and Wales; and what estimate has been made of its growth to 1980.
§ Mr. FreesonI regret that this information is not available. The local government superannuation funds are valued quinquennially, the most recent valuation date being 1st April 1974, and valuations should strictly be completed within two years. 1st April 1974, was also, however, the date on which the revised local government superannuation scheme entailing substantial changes in benefit came into operation, and also that from which the superannuation funds were regrouped into less than a quarter236W of their previous numbers. These changes caused unavoidable delays in providing the materials for valuation, and too few of the 87 valuations necessary have yet been completed for any reliable estimates to be based on them.