§ 38. Mr. Evelyn Kingasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether retired council employees whose pensions are index-linked now in some cases receive more in pension than their successors in the same post receive in salary; if this system remains appropriate; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. ShoreThis could happen only where highly exceptional circumstances coincided, and such coincidences would be very rare. It might happen, for instance, if the pensioner had retired during the 1972–73 pay restraint, his pension had been increased under the Pensions (Increase) Act 1974, his salary during his last few months had been supplemented because of special duties, he had 45 years pensionable service and he was one of the few persons with pre-1953 superannuation rights whose whole benefit was in the form of a pension. On average the present pension of a person who retired five years ago would be about 60 per cent. of his successor's current salary. I would think it wholly inappropriate to revise the system of pension protection because such very rare anomalies may occur.