§ Ms Rosie WintertonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the distribution of the National Bus Company pensions settlement. [160869]
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§ Mr. HillI am very pleased to say that I have been informed by the National Bus Company pension trustees that the representative beneficiaries have now reached an agreement which will enable the trustees to formulate their proposals for the final distribution of the settlement. This agreement removes a major impediment to further early progress.
Court approval will be necessary for the representative beneficiaries' agreement and for the trustees' proposals. I understand that beneficiaries will be given an opportunity to express their views prior to this approval being sought. The trustees and the representative beneficiaries will be issuing an information bulletin in this regard very shortly.
The trustees' aim is to obtain the court's approval this summer which should mean that the distribution will be very largely completed this autumn.
I urge all the parties involved to ensure that this latest very positive progress is continued over the next few months and we will remain in close touch with developments.