NAPF responds to The Pensions Regulator's defined benefit consultation

The National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) today (Monday) published its response to The Pensions Regulator’s (TPR) consultation on defined benefit (DB) regulation.

Joanne Segars, NAPF Chief Executive said:

“The introduction of a new objective for The Pensions Regulator to ‘minimise any adverse impact on the sustainable growth of an employer’ and the recognition of the importance of the employer’s long term support of the schemes is good news, but its success will be dependent on the consistent and accurate implementation by TPR caseworkers in their discussions with schemes and sponsors. So it is vital TPR follows through on its undertaking to ensure that scheme risk is managed rather than eliminated. TPR must make sure this intention is clearly understood by trustees, actuaries, consultants and sponsors alike.

“Growth can mean different things to different types of sponsoring employers and it’s essential that TPR applies a broad interpretation of growth that takes into account scheme specific circumstances, and works closely with trustees to understand what employer growth means to them.  It’s important that TPR considers how this could apply across different sectors, including the charitable sector.”

The NAPF believes it is also essential that the essence of TPR’s approach to DB funding is precisely communicated so that trustees are not overloaded with unnecessary information and key messages are not lost in the sheer volume of text.

Ms Segars added:

“We urge TPR to ensure the documentation is concise and clear. In particular, we recommend the documents contain a summary of the key messages and best practice principles to help trustees prioritise their time and efforts. This will help trustees to adopt the essence of the new funding regime and crucial points are not inadvertently overlooked.”

Notes to editors:
1.            The NAPF is the leading voice of workplace pensions in the UK. We speak for 1,300 pension schemes with some 16 million members and assets of around £900 billion. NAPF members also include over 400 businesses providing essential services to the pensions sector.
2.            The NAPF submission can be found on the NAPF website here
Contacts:
Lucy Grubb, Head of Media and PR, NAPF, 020 7601 1726 or 07713 073023, [email protected]
Aimee Savage Richards, Press Officer (interim), 020 7601 1718 or 07825 171 446, [email protected]