But some commentators have raised concerns that this will make TPR's other objectives to protect members and the Pension Protection Fund more precarious.
Broadstone actuarial director John Broome Saunders said the move marked "a clear shift in the balance of power".
He said: "The majority of DB scheme sponsors will want to argue that sustainable growth requires greater investment in their business, and thus lower contributions to fund pension deficits.
"Larger deficits mean less security for members, and a heightened chance that schemes end up cutting benefits and being dumped in the PPF."
Hargreaves Lansdowne head of pensions research Tom McPhail argued there is a danger the approach will merely "kick the funding problem down the road".
McPhail said: "There isn't enough money in the pension system to pay all the promised benefits and there probably never will be. Some scheme members will have to take a cut in their benefits, the only question is how evenly the pain gets shared out." Towers Watson senior consultant Adam Boyes said the change could impact how funding agreements between employers and trustees are policed - but he added the Budget had not given companies a "green light" to reduce contributions.
Others have welcomed the move, arguing a strong sponsoring employer is more important for a pension scheme in the long term.
Lobby groups the National Association of Pension Funds and the Confederation of British Industry both welcomed the decision.
PwC pensions partner Jeremy May said the move would help ensure employers are not met with "unmanageable" funding obligations.
He said: "It is in the best interests of the pension scheme members and the Pension Protection Fund that an employer does not become unnecessarily weakened as the result of the trustees' demands."
IMPROVEMENTS TO HMRC PENSIONS ONLINE
28 March 2013
HMRC have made a number of enhancements to Pension Schemes Online, which will be available from 6 April 2013.
The online service will be unavailable for a few days around this date to allow these changes to be made. Please see the service availability pages at HMRC website for exact details.
The enhancements impact on:
Annual allowance scheme pays
From 2011-12, the annual allowance for tax relief on pension savings for individuals was reduced, resulting in more people being liable to an annual allowance charge. Where an individual has an annual allowance charge liability above £2,000 they can, in certain circumstances, elect for the pension scheme to pay part or all of the charge on their behalf. Scheme administrators must report the tax charges using the quarterly Accounting for Tax (AFT) return. For annual allowance charges arising in 2011-12 this would mean reporting by
CIPP Policy News Journal
12/04/2013, Page 279 of 362
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