The Occupational Pension Schemes (Governance and Registration) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2024

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations revoke and re-enact the Occupational Pension Schemes (Governance and Registration) (Amendment No. 2) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2023 (“the Governance and Registration Regulations”) which would otherwise cease to have effect by virtue of section 51(3)(b) of the Pensions Act (Northern Ireland) 2015. Like the Governance and Registration Regulations, the Regulations amend the Occupational Pension Schemes (Scheme Administration) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997 (“the 1997 Regulations”) and the Register of Occupational and Personal Pension Schemes Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005 (“the 2005 Regulations”). The amendments are made to transpose, into pensions legislation, Parts 3 and 7, and related provisions of Parts 9 to 11, of the Investment Consultancy and Fiduciary Management Market Investigation Order 2019 made by the Competition and Markets Authority on 10th June 2019.

Part 2 of these Regulations inserts Part 6 into the 1997 Regulations. Part 6—

• sets out the duties of the trustees of occupational pension schemes which are relevant trust schemes in connection with the provision of fiduciary management services and investment consultancy services (Chapters 2 and 3 of Part 6), and

• makes provision for enforcement of those duties by the Pensions Regulator (Chapter 4 of Part 6).

For those purposes “relevant trust scheme” has the meaning given in regulation 30 of the 1997 Regulations, “investment consultancy services” has the meaning given in regulation 34 of the 1997 Regulations, and “fiduciary management services” has the meaning given in paragraph 3 of the Schedule to the 1997 Regulations. Such services do not include high-level commentary provided by an actuary or certain advice given to the trustees of a relevant trust scheme by the scheme’s legal adviser acting in that capacity.

The trustees of relevant trust schemes will be required to set objectives for persons who provide them with investment consultancy services, and review the performance of those providers against those objectives annually (regulations 35 and 36 of the 1997 Regulations).

The trustees of relevant trust schemes will also be required to carry out a qualifying tender process in respect of arrangements they have made, or make in future, for a person to provide them with fiduciary management services or for such a person to manage an additional amount of the scheme’s assets which such a person manages.

Part 3 of these Regulations amends regulation 3 of the 2005 Regulations so that information concerning persons who provide fiduciary management services or investment consultancy services to the trustees of a relevant trust scheme is “registrable information”. “Registrable information” is information which must be entered in the register of occupational and personal pension schemes compiled and maintained under section 59 of the Pensions Act 2004.

Part 3 of these Regulations also makes minor amendments to regulation 3 of the 2005 Regulations to remove from the registrable information requirements certain information which is no longer needed by the Pensions Regulator.

Part 4 of these Regulations revokes the Governance and Registration Regulations.

As these Regulations make in relation to Northern Ireland only provision corresponding to provision contained in regulations made by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in relation to Great Britain, the requirement for consultation does not apply by virtue of Article 289(2)(e) of the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 2005 and paragraph 8 of Schedule 18 to the Pensions Act (Northern Ireland) 2015.

An assessment of the cost to business of these Regulations is detailed in a Regulatory Impact Assessment which accompanied the Occupational Pension Schemes (Governance and Registration) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2022 (S.R. 2022 No. 216), a copy of which was laid in the Business Office and the Library of the Northern Ireland Assembly. Copies of the Assessment are available from the Department for Communities, Social Security Policy, Legislation and Decision Making Services, Level 8, Causeway Exchange, 1-7 Bedford Street, Belfast BT2 7EG or from the website: https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/articles/pension-information. A copy of the Assessment is also annexed to the Explanatory Memorandum which is available alongside this Statutory Rule on the website: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisr.