The Scotland Act 1998 (Transitory and Transitional Provisions) (Scottish Parliamentary Pension Scheme) Order 1999

Article Q1

SCHEDULE 5 PURCHASE OF ADDED YEARS

1.  In this Schedule, unless the context otherwise requires–

“payment for the purchase of added years” means such a payment whether payable periodically or by way of a single lump sum;

“periodical contributions” means the sums payable by a participating member whose application to purchase added years other than by a single payment has been accepted by the Parliamentary corporation;

“final salary” means a member’s final salary as defined in article F3(2);

“single mandate member” means a participating member who is not in receipt of a salary payable pursuant to a resolution (or combination of resolutions) of either House of Parliament relating to the remuneration of members of that House or under section 1 of the European Parliament (Pay and Pensions) Act 1979(1).

Purchase of added years by periodical contributions

2.—(1) A participating member may apply in writing to the Parliamentary corporation to purchase added years by periodical contributions payable until he attains the age of 65 and the Parliamentary corporation shall accept his application if all the following conditions in respect of that application are satisfied:–

(a) the participating member will not at his next birthday after the date of the application have attained the age of 65;

(b) the participating member has satisfied the Parliamentary corporation, in whatever manner the Parliamentary corporation shall require, that he is in good health;

(c) the number of added years which the participating member has applied to purchase does not exceed the maximum permitted by paragraph 8;

(d) the participating member has supplied to the Parliamentary corporation such information and evidence as it may require and has indicated whether his application is made under this sub-paragraph or sub-paragraph (2) below; and

(e) the participating member is, at the date the Parliamentary corporation receives the application, a single mandate member.

(2) A participating member may, within the period of 12 months immediately following the date when he commenced a period of service as a single mandate member, or within such longer period as the Parliamentary corporation may in special circumstances allow, apply in writing to the Parliamentary corporation to purchase added years by the payment of periodical contributions for a period of four or five years and the Parliamentary corporation shall accept his application if, at the date when the Parliamentary corporation receives the application, the participating member has not reached the age of 65 and if the conditions mentioned in sub-paragraph (1)(b), (c) and (d) above are satisfied in respect of that application.

3.  An application by a participating member to purchase added years shall be irrevocable on and from the date when the Parliamentary corporation accepts it.

4.  Where an application by a participating member to purchase added years by periodical contributions is accepted by the Parliamentary corporation–

(a) those periodical contributions shall, subject to the provisions of paragraph 5, be payable–

(i) in the case of an application under paragraph 2(1), from the date of the participating member’s birthday next following the receipt by the Parliamentary corporation of his application and until the participating member attains the age of 65; and

(ii) in the case of an application under paragraph 2(2), for whichever of the periods of four or five years the participating member has chosen for the payment of periodical contributions beginning on such date not later than two months from the date of acceptance of the application as the Parliamentary corporation shall specify by notice in writing to the participating member;

(b) periodical contributions by a participating member for the added years shall be payable by deductions from his salary or, in the case of arrears, in such manner as the Parliamentary corporation may require; and

(c) the periodical contributions payable by a participating member for the added years shall be calculated in accordance with tables prepared from time to time by the Government Actuary.

Interrupted service

5.—(1) If a participating member dies or ceases to be a member of the Parliament because of ill-health in circumstances to which article J1 applies and he–

(a) has applied to purchase added years by periodical contributions; and

(b) has been notified in writing by the Parliamentary corporation that his application has been accepted,

no further periodical contributions will be payable from the day following the date of his death or from the day following the date he ceases to be a member of the Parliament, as the case may be, and any added years that he has applied to purchase by periodical contributions shall be credited in full as reckonable service as a participating member.

(2) If a participating member who has applied to purchase added years by periodical contributions and whose application has been accepted by the Parliamentary corporation ceases to be a member of the Parliament in circumstances to which article J1 does not apply, or if a participating member ceases to be a single mandate member, no such periodical contributions shall be payable by him from the day following the date when he so ceases but his reckonable service as a single mandate member shall in respect of each application be increased by–

Where–

• A is the number of added years he applied to purchase by periodical contributions;

• B is the period (expressed to the nearest day) during which periodical contributions have been paid;

• C is the total period during which periodical contributions would have been payable in accordance with paragraph 4(a).

(3) If a member to whom sub-paragraph (2) above has applied subsequently commences a further period of service as a single mandate member before he has attained the age of 65, in circumstances in which the periods together constitute an aggregate period of reckonable service as a single mandate member, then subject to sub-paragraphs (4) and (6) below, he may give notice to the Parliamentary corporation in writing within the period of three months beginning with the date upon which he commenced the further period of service that he intends to resume payment of his periodical contributions in respect of the added years for which he was making periodical contributions in his immediately preceding period of service and such periodical contributions shall then be payable from the date when he commenced the further period of service as a participating member and shall continue until he attains the age of 65 at the rate or rates applicable during that immediately preceding period.

(4) Where a participating member who ceased to pay periodical contributions by reason only of his ceasing to serve as a member of the Parliament or as a single mandate member, but subsequently became a single mandate member again and resumed the purchase of added years by periodical contributions in accordance with sub-paragraph (3) above thereafter becomes entitled to a pension under article F1, his reckonable service as a single mandate member shall be increased in accordance with sub-paragraph (2) above except that C shall be read as the total period during which he would have paid periodical contributions for those added years if his service as a single mandate member had been continuous.

(5) If a participating member to whom sub-paragraph (2) above has applied subsequently commences a further period of service as a single mandate member before he has attained the age of 65, in circumstances in which the periods together constitute an aggregate period of reckonable service, then subject to sub-paragraphs (4) and (6) of this paragraph, he may, if, in consequence of his break in service as a single mandate member, there has been a reduction in the number of added years which he is able to purchase in full, with the agreement of the Parliamentary corporation and, subject to the provisions of paragraphs 2(a)(ii) and 8(1), apply to purchase by periodical contributions payable until he attains the age of 65 some or all of the number of added years comprised in that reduction at the rate applicable to the participating member’s birthday next following the receipt by the Parliamentary corporation of his application.

(6) Sub-paragraphs (3), (4) and (5) above shall not apply where the application to purchase added years before the participating member ceased to be a member of the Parliament or a single mandate member was made under paragraph 2(2).

Purchase of added years by lump sum

6.—(1) Subject to sub-paragraph (2) below, a participating member may apply in writing to the Parliamentary corporation to purchase added years by a lump sum payment.

(2) The Parliamentary corporation shall accept an application to purchase added years under this paragraph if all the following conditions in respect of that application are satisfied:–

(a) the participating member has not reached the age of 65;

(b) the participating member applies to the Parliamentary corporation within the period of 12 months immediately following the date when he commenced a period of service as a single mandate member or within such longer period as the Parliamentary corporation may in special circumstances allow;

(c) the participating member has not applied to the Parliamentary corporation under article J1 for an early pension because of ill-health;

(d) the number of added years which the member applies to purchase does not exceed the maximum permitted by paragraph 8;

(e) the participating member has supplied to the Parliamentary corporation such information and evidence as it may require; and

(f) the participating member is, at the date the Parliamentary corporation receives the application, a single mandate member.

(3) A participating member who has applied to purchase added years under paragraph 2(2) and to whom paragraph 5(2) applies may, in respect of any such application if–

(a) in consequence of his ceasing to be a member of the Parliament or a single mandate member, there has been a reduction in the number of added years which he is able to purchase in full;

(b) the conditions of sub-paragraph (2)(c), (d) and (e) of this paragraph are satisfied in respect of the application made under this sub-paragraph; and

(c) the application under this sub-paragraph is made within three months of his ceasing to be a participating member of the Parliament or a single mandate member,

apply in writing to the Parliamentary corporation to purchase by a lump sum payment some or all of the number of added years comprised in that reduction at the rate applicable at the member’s birthday next following the receipt by the Parliamentary corporation of the application.

Lump sum payments

7.—(1) Any participating member who has applied to the Parliamentary corporation to purchase added years by a lump sum payment shall, within the period of six months commencing on the date when his application is accepted by the Parliamentary corporation, make the lump sum payment which shall be calculated by reference to a member’s salary at the time when his application was received by the Parliamentary corporation and in accordance with tables to be prepared from time to time by the Government Actuary and the amount of his reckonable service as a single mandate member shall be increased accordingly with effect from the date on which the lump sum payment is received by the Parliamentary corporation.

(2) If, after an application to purchase added years by lump sum payment has been made by a participating member and accepted by the Parliamentary corporation, the payment is not received by the Parliamentary corporation within the period of six months mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) above, the application to purchase shall cease to be valid.

Limits on purchase of added years

8.—(1) Subject to sub-paragraph (2) below, the amount of a participating member’s periodical contributions for the purchase of added years, when aggregated with his contributions as a participating member under article D1 and any other additional voluntary contributions, shall not in any tax year exceed 15% of his member’s salary or, if that salary exceeds the permitted maximum, 15% of the permitted maximum.

(2) Sub-paragraph (1) above shall not apply to the purchase of added years by periodical contributions payable for a period of four years in accordance with paragraph 4(1)(b), and for the purpose of the calculation referred to in sub-paragraph (1) such periodical contributions shall be disregarded.

(3) If a participating member applies to the Parliamentary corporation to purchase added years by periodical contributions, the annual amount of periodical contributions payable by him in accordance with paragraph 4(a)(i), or for a period of five years in accordance with paragraphs 2(2) and 4(a)(ii), shall not be such as to exceed, at any time during the period such periodical contributions would be so payable, the amount (if any) by which for the time being–

(i) the annual amount of his periodical contributions referred to in sub-paragraph (3) of this paragraph (if any), aggregated with the annual amount of his contributions as a participating member under article D1 and any other additional voluntary contributions,

is less than–

(ii) the limit under sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph.

(4) Subject to sub-paragraph (1) above, the maximum added years that a participating member may purchase both by lump sum payment and by periodical contributions shall be calculated so that his pension under one or both of articles F1 and F2, when aggregated with the pension equivalent of any lump sum under article G1 and any pension under the AVC Scheme or any additional voluntary contributions scheme, shall not exceed whichever may be appropriate of the limits set out in Schedule 2.

Further applications to purchase added years

9.  Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, the Parliamentary corporation may accept more than one application from a participating member to purchase added years by the payment of periodical contributions or lump sum payments.

General

10.  The provisions of this Schedule are without prejudice to any maximum pension imposed in relation to a participating member by article F5 and Schedule 2 (maximum pensions payable).

(1)

1979 c. 50.