Policy News Journal - 2013-14

A series of short videos have also been added to help inform savers on the subject of automatic enrolment and the importance of saving for retirement.

Marta Phillips OBE CA, Chief Executive of TPAS said: " I am delighted this work has been completed as it gives us the foundation we need to make it more relevant for people seeking information and guidance from TPAS. Users of the website and social media links can look forward to further developments which will enable them to find the information they need." Alison Bailey, Head of Policy and Technical Development at TPAS said: " With over 3 million visits to our website in the last year, we know that more and more people are seeking help and support with their pensions. We hope that the new content will make it easier for people to find the information they need, as well as encourage more people to save for retirement." The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) is an independent non-profit organisation that provides free information, advice and guidance on the whole spectrum of company, personal and stakeholder schemes. The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has published its 2013 annual funding statement to help pension scheme trustees and sponsoring employers to agree valuations and deficit recovery plans. The Pensions Regulator has published its 2013 annual funding statement to help pension scheme trustees and sponsoring employers to agree valuations and deficit recovery plans that protect the interests of retirement savers, whilst also being affordable for employers facing challenging economic conditions. “I want to see pension trustees agree long-term strategies with employers that protect the interests of retirement savers, whilst also enabling viable businesses to thrive and grow. We expect them to mitigate the risks to their scheme, but this does not require them to be overly prudent. “As our analysis shows, circumstances differ greatly between schemes. Many are in a relatively strong position and our starting point will be that schemes should consider whether to maintain present levels of deficit contributions as agreed at the last valuation. But some employers will struggle to pay that level of contributions - and may need to make use of the flexibility within the system.” The 2013 statement makes clear that trustees can use the flexibility available in setting the discount rate to calculate future liabilities (known as ‘technical provisions’), based on the yield held by assets of the scheme and / or the yield on Government or high-quality bonds, to best fit their circumstances. The regulator’s chair Michael O’Higgins said: THE PENSIONS REGULATOR – ANNUAL FUNDING STATEMENT 2013 8 May 2013

Full details of the TPR press release can be found at the Pensions Regulator website.

HMRC - ANNUAL ALLOWANCE AND PENSION PROTECTION FUND TECHNICAL UPDATE

9 May 2013

CIPP Policy News Journal

16/04/2014, Page 423 of 519

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