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

Pensions for surviving spouses

K1.—(1) Subject to the following provisions of this article, the surviving spouse of a person who was at the time of his death a participant, a pensioner or a deferred pensioner shall be entitled to receive a pension under this article.

(2) The annual amount of a pension payable under this article shall be five-eighths of the basic or prospective pension or pensions of the deceased.

(3) Subject to paragraphs (4) and (5), a pension payable under this article shall continue for the surviving spouse’s life or until her remarriage; but in the case of remarriage the Parliamentary corporation may, if it thinks fit, at any time direct that the pension shall be restored if satisfied that the subsequent marriage has been terminated or that there are exceptional reasons for the payment of the pension notwithstanding the subsistence of that marriage.

(4) Subject to paragraph (5), no pension shall be payable under this article to a surviving spouse who, at the deceased’s death, was cohabiting with another person; and if a surviving spouse entitled to such a pension cohabits with another person, the pension shall cease to be payable:

• Provided that the Parliamentary corporation may, if it thinks fit, direct that the pension shall be paid or restored, as the case may be, if satisfied that the cohabitation has been terminated or that there are exceptional reasons for the payment of the pension notwithstanding that the cohabitation continues.

(5) For any period as specified in section 17(5) of the Pension Schemes Act 1993 (period for which Category B retirement pension etc is or would be payable) the surviving spouse of a person shall, notwithstanding paragraphs (3) and (4), be entitled to a pension under this article.

(6) Where a person dies in circumstances in which, apart from this paragraph, a surviving spouse’s pension calculated in accordance with paragraph (2) would be payable to someone married to him within the period of six months ending with his death and it appears to the Parliamentary corporation that his death within six months was to be foreseen by him at the date of the marriage, then if–

(a) there are no children of that marriage; and

(b) the couple were married after the termination of the person’s service in contracted-out employment in respect of which the surviving spouse’s pension is payable,

the Parliamentary corporation may direct that all or any part of the surviving spouse’s pension, as it thinks fit, shall not be payable.