This proposed law seeks to reform pensions across the public sector. It would also make other changes to the rules related to judicial offices. The pension reforms partly respond to a finding of unlawful discrimination in existing schemes and are partly aimed at improving the operation of public sector pensions. The changes relating to judicial offices are intended to improve recruitment and retention in the judiciary.
Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Bill [HL] (339 KB , PDF)
On 7 September 2021, the House of Lords is scheduled to debate the second reading of the Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Bill [HL].
The bill contains provisions in a variety of areas. First, for all public service pensions, it seeks to remedy unlawful discrimination that arose when existing public schemes were closed to certain members between 2014 and 2016. It proposes separate remedies for judicial schemes, local government schemes and all other public sector schemes.
The remedies follow a series of consultations. They are expected to cost around £17 billion. It is not yet clear who will bear these costs.
Other measures in the bill that change the reformed pension schemes brought in between 2014 and 2016 include reforming the ‘cost control mechanism’ (CCM). This was intended to protect both member benefits and the cost to the taxpayer from unforeseen changes in pension scheme costs. The reforms are aimed at striking a fairer balance between scheme members and taxpayers than was initially the case and making the CCM more stable.
Finally, the bill contains a number of provisions that aim to improve recruitment and retention in the UK judiciary. Some of these relate to the judicial pension scheme. The Government proposes to introduce further reforms, for example to make the scheme exempt from pension tax-free contribution limits and to improve accrual rates.
Other measures are unrelated to pensions. They include:
The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee has criticised the Government for being overly focused on the cost of public pensions to the taxpayer. The committee argued there should be greater consideration of the benefits of pensions, such as in recruiting and retaining staff and in reducing the future cost of welfare benefits. It also argued for further evaluation of the 2014 to 2016 reforms.
Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Bill [HL] (339 KB , PDF)
This briefing is the fifth of a series on the post-war history of the UK economy. The series proceeds decade-by-decade from the 1950s onwards, providing an overview of the key macroeconomic developments of each decade. This fifth briefing looks at the 1990s. In this decade the UK economy settled into a period of low inflation and steady growth; however, living standards growth was lower and more regionally concentrated than in previous decades.
The Labour government has set out its short- and long-term plans to reduce the pressure on prison capacity in England and Wales. This includes releasing eligible prisoners on licence into the community after they have served 40% of their sentence and building more prisons. Organisations have highlighted the risk of prison overcrowding on prisoner wellbeing. Some charities have called for better mental health support for prisoners whilst in custody and on release.
A recent paper about UK foreign policy called for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) to “modernise the working environment to set a future oriented culture”. It described the FCDO’s physical surroundings as “somewhat elitist and rooted in the past”. This briefing looks back at Lords Hansard to chart the House’s response to more radical plans in the 1960s that proposed a new foreign office building, which later formed part of a wider scheme for the redevelopment of Whitehall.
