In these Regulations—

• “PSPJOA 2022” means the Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Act 2022;

• “the 2014 Regulations” means the Public Service (Civil Servants and Others) Pensions Regulations (Northern Ireland) 20144;

• “the PSP Directions 2023” means the Public Service Pensions (Exercise of Powers, Compensation and Information) Directions (Northern Ireland) 2023;

• “alpha” means the pension scheme established by the 2014 Regulations;

• “alpha benefits” means new scheme benefits5 under alpha;

• “civil service scheme” means alpha or the PCSPS(NI);

• “deferred choice decision” has the meaning given in regulation 12(1);

• “deferred choice decision-maker” means the person who may make a deferred choice decision under regulation 12(2);

• “deferred choice member” means a member with remediable service who is not an immediate choice member;

• “end of the section 10 election period”, in relation to a deferred choice member, means the end of the day determined in accordance with—

  1. a

     where the member is the deferred choice decision-maker, regulation 13(1)(b);

  2. b

     where a person other than the member is the deferred choice decision-maker, regulation 13(4)(b);

• “immediate choice decision” has the meaning given in regulation 8(1);

• “immediate choice decision-maker” means the person who may make an immediate choice decision under regulation 8(2);

• “immediate choice member” means a member with remediable service who, immediately before 1st October 2023, was deceased or entitled to the present payment of a pension, other than an excluded pension, under a civil service scheme; and “excluded pension” means a pension the rate of which—

  1. a

     is not determined (by any extent) by reference to the member’s remediable service, and

  2. b

     is not affected by the coming into force of section 2(1) of PSPJOA 2022;

• “member” means an active, deferred, deceased or pensioner, but not a pension credit member6 of a civil service scheme;

• “opted-out service election” has the meaning given in regulation 6(1);

• “the PCSPS(NI)” means the pension scheme made under Article 3 of the Superannuation (Northern Ireland) Order 19727 which is the principal civil service pension scheme within the meaning of Article 4(10) of that Order, and in relation to a member—

  1. a

     “the PCSPS(NI)” means the Section of the PCSPS(NI) that is the relevant Chapter 1 legacy scheme8 for the member;

  2. b

     “PCSPS(NI) benefits” means benefits under the PCSPS(NI);

• “remediable service”, in relation to a member, means (except in this definition) the member’s remediable service9 in an employment or office that is pensionable service under a civil service scheme;

• “remedy member” means a deferred choice member or an immediate choice member;

• “the scheme manager” means the Department of Finance;

• “Section I” means Section I of the PCSPS(NI);

• “Section II” means Section II of the PCSPS(NI);

• “Section III” means Section III of the PCSPS(NI);

• “section 6 election” has the meaning given in regulation 8(1)(a);

• “section 10 election” has the meaning given in regulation 12(1)(a).

For the purposes of these Regulations, a reference in PSPJOA 2022 to section 2(1) of that Act coming into force is to be understood as a reference to that section coming into force in relation to members of a civil service scheme.

In these Regulations, a reference to a provision of the PSP Directions 2023 is a reference to that provision as amended from time to time.