NAPF comments on pensions minister's warning against EU 'Solvency II' rules

Commenting on the Pensions Minister’s warning against the introduction of a new EU Directive on pensions based on Solvency II, Joanne Segars, Chief Executive of the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF), said:

“Final salary pensions are already under huge pressure and this is the last thing they need. These plans would ramp costs up dramatically.

“Businesses struggling with a flatlining economy would suddenly have to pump billions more into their pension scheme. This would mean less money for jobs and investment, at a time when the economy desperately needs both.

“Firms would be so badly hit by these new rules that they would simply shut these pensions down altogether. It would be a crippling blow for what is left of final salary pensions in the private sector.

“The EU says it wants to improve the security of pensions, but it is going the wrong way about it. The UK already has one of the best protected pensions systems in the world. Perversely, these new laws would make pensions for UK workers less generous and less secure.”

Notes to editors:

1.The NAPF is the leading voice of workplace pensions in the UK. We speak for 1,200 pension schemes with some 15 million members and assets of around £800 billion. NAPF members also include over 400 businesses providing essential services to the pensions sector.