§ Mr. WatersonTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what regulatory reform the Government propose in respect of private pension provision. [11823]
§ Mr. DenhamOn 17 July, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced a wide-ranging review of pensions. One of the pension challenges to which my right hon. Friend referred was the need to get the regulation of pensions right. The personal pensions mis-selling scandal illustrates too clearly what can go wrong when pensions are not properly regulated. Appropriate regulation provides security for members, minimises the scope for abuse and does not impose an undue burden on providers.
As part of the review, we are taking stock of the way the recent pension reforms are being implemented, and we have already begun consultation with interested parties, including employers, employees, the pensions industry, the regulatory authorities and others.
We will also consult fully on our plans to develop new stakeholder pensions to offer secure, flexible, value-for-money second pensions, particularly to those who cannot join an employer's occupational scheme and whose pay is low or who have intermittent wages; and a framework of citizenship pensions for those who assume responsibility as carers and who cannot build up a second pension scheme in their own right.
The review will enable the Government to publish an initial framework for change in the first part of 1998. There will then be a period of further consultation before firm proposals for legislation are developed.