Horizon scanning

Horizon scanning

This subtopic contains:

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a Practice Note setting out key dates and future developments for pension lawyers to look out for. See: Horizon scanning—Pensions
•
a Practice Note providing a summary of the provisions of the Pension Schemes Bill (PSB) and tracking

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Latest Pensions News

IFoA research calls for legal reforms to modernise UK pension system

The Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA), in partnership with Ipsos, has published research calling for urgent reform of the UK pension system to better reflect modern working lives. The report finds that the current system, designed for uninterrupted careers with single employers, systematically disadvantages self-employed individuals, part-time workers, and those with disrupted work patterns, contributing to persistent pension gaps and increased risk of retirement poverty. Drawing on filmed interviews and actuarial analysis, the study reveals that these gaps are rooted in systemic design rather than personal choice. It recommends measures such as flexible auto-enrolment for the self-employed, early savings initiatives, improved communication around life events, community-based pension models, and a national pensions literacy strategy. These proposals aim to ensure the system remains inclusive, adaptable, and capable of delivering adequate retirement income for all.

GAD review finds LGPS Scotland funds all in surplus with £60bn total assets

The Government Actuary’s Department (GAD) has published its review of the 2023 actuarial valuations of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) in Scotland, as required under Section 13 of the Public Service Pensions Act 2013. The review found that all 12 constituent funds—covering approximately 600,000 scheme members—reported surpluses as of March 2023, with total assets amounting to £60bn and an aggregate funding level of 141%. This represents an improvement compared with 2020, when four funds were in deficit. The report also highlighted variations in the funds’ approaches to surplus management and recommended that additional guidance be provided to address intergenerational fairness considerations. GAD has advised Scottish Ministers, through the Scottish Public Pensions Agency, to continue engaging with stakeholders on consistency measures and to review climate risk analysis principles in advance of the 2026 valuations.

PASA releases new guidance on standardising use of warning and unavailable codes to support Pensions Dashboards consistency

The new Pensions Administration Standards Association (PASA) guidance on the use of warning and unavailable codes within pensions dashboards aims to support trustees, scheme managers, and providers in applying consistent practices when complete and accurate value data cannot be immediately provided. While the Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP) data standards are intentionally flexible to accommodate the diversity of pension schemes and benefit structures, this flexibility can lead to inconsistent application and user experiences. To mitigate this, the new PASA toolkit aims to offer practical advice developed in collaboration with PDP and the Money and Pensions Service, while reminding trustees and providers that they remain responsible for regulatory compliance. The guidance acknowledges that delays in updating value data may occur, regardless of whether stored or on-demand calculations are used and suggests that schemes may wish to inform savers about potential delays in pensions dashboard updates. Although the guidance toolkit addresses complex scenarios, it does not yet cover specific considerations for cash balance schemes, which are to be addressed in future updates. The guidance content will also evolve based on user feedback and live testing, with changes tracked via a change log similar to that used for PDP standards.

A static statutory reference relating to State pension age (Spirit (Legacy) Pension Trustee v Alexis)

Pensions analysis: In defined circumstances the Spirit (Legacy) Pension Scheme (‘the Scheme’) provided for a supplement to the scheme pension to be paid to a member until he or she reached ‘State pension age’ (a defined term under the relevant rule). Mrs Alexis had brought a complaint to the Pensions Ombudsman about the date to which her supplement fell to be paid—was it 65 (as the Trustee said) or 66 (as she said)? The Pensions Ombudsman sided with Mrs Alexis. In its judgment on the Trustee’s appeal, the court disagreed. The decision turned on the proper construction of the words ‘State pension age has the meaning given by the rules in paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 4 to the Pensions Act 1995 (rules for equalisation of pensionable ages for men and women)’. Was that definition static or did it capture post-rule amendments to the relevant statute? Written by James Walmsley, barrister at Wilberforce Chambers.