§ Mr. Woodward:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what steps the Government have taken since May 1997 to ensure that members of final salary pension schemes were made aware of risks to their accrued pension rights upon employer insolvency and scheme wind-up; [142380]
(2) what the Government's policy is on advising existing pension scheme members of risks to their pension rights as a consequence of employer insolvency. [142384]
§ Malcolm Wicks:The Government encourage anyone considering joining or leaving a pension scheme to obtain as much information as possible about the options open to them and to seek independent financial advice. As well as highlighting further sources of information, leaflets published by the Pensions Service provide basic information on occupational pensions for people to use as they decide the best way in which to provide for their retirement. Similar information aimed at pension providers is published by the Inland Revenue.
Occupational pension schemes are provided voluntarily by employers and the trustees are required as a minimum to make funding information available to members as part of the annual report. It is the responsibility of employers and scheme trustees to monitor how scheme assets compare with scheme liabilities and take whatever action is require to address any funding shortfall, working within the legislative framework provided by the Government. To reduce the risks to members' accrued pension rights as a consequence of employer insolvency, the Government is introducing the new Pension Protection Fund. The introduction of new scheme-specific funding requirements will raise member awareness and understanding by requiring that trustees send regularly updated information to scheme members each year, containing key information about the funding position of their scheme.
693W