The Pensions (Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and Consultation by Employers – Amendment) Regulations 2012

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend 15 Statutory Instruments and one Northern Ireland Statutory Rule about occupational pension schemes, the Pension Protection Fund, the Pensions Regulator and pension sharing.

Regulation 2 amends the Occupational and Personal Pension Schemes (Consultation by Employers and Miscellaneous Amendment) Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/349). Regulation 2(3) makes an amendment which provides that certain members of occupational pension schemes must be consulted before the rate at which their pensions are revalued or indexed (increased) can be changed. It also provides that no such consultation has to be carried out if that change is beneficial or neutral for the member. Regulation 2(2) makes a consequential amendment so that no such consultation is required if the members were notified of that change before these Regulations came into force.

Regulations 3 to 17 replace references to the Institute of Actuaries and to the Faculty of Actuaries with references to the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, which is the new body formed by the merger of the Institute of Actuaries and the Faculty of Actuaries.

Regulation 2 has a negligible impact on the private sector and civil society organisations. An assessment of the impact of regulation 2 of these Regulations is included in the impact assessment entitled ‘Impact of the move to CPI for Occupational Pensions’ dated 11th February 2011. Copies of that impact assessment are available from the libraries of both Houses of Parliament, the Better Regulation Unit of the Department for Work and Pensions, Caxton House, Tothill Street, London SW1H 9NA and the Department’s website at: http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/impact-assessments.

A full impact assessment has not been published for regulations 3 to 17 of this instrument as they have no impact on the costs of the private sector and civil society organisations.