BAILII [Home] [Databases] [World Law] [Multidatabase Search] [Help] [Feedback]

Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland


You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland >> The Occupational Pension Schemes (Winding Up, Deficiency on Winding Up and Transfer Values) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005 No. 20
URL: http://www.bailii.org/nie/legis/num_reg/2005/20050020.html

[New search] [Help]



STATUTORY RULES OF NORTHERN IRELAND


2005 No. 20

PENSIONS

The Occupational Pension Schemes (Winding Up, Deficiency on Winding Up and Transfer Values) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005

  Made 21st January 2005 
  Coming into operation 15th February 2005 

The Department for Social Development, in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 109 and 177(2) and (3) of the Pension Schemes (Northern Ireland) Act 1993[1] and Articles 73(3), 75(5) and 166(1) to (3) of the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1995[2], and now vested in it[3], and of all other powers enabling it in that behalf, hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement
     1. These Regulations may be cited as the Occupational Pension Schemes (Winding Up, Deficiency on Winding Up and Transfer Values) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005 and shall come into operation on 15th February 2005.

Amendment of the Occupational Pension Schemes (Winding Up) Regulations
    
2.  - (1) The Occupational Pension Schemes (Winding Up) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996[4] shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (4).

    (2) In regulation 4(1)[5] (calculation of amounts of liabilities) for "regulations 4A and 4B" there shall be substituted "regulations 4A to 4C".

    (3) In regulation 4B(1)[6] (calculation of liabilities where employer not insolvent and where winding up commences on or after 11th June 2003) at the beginning there shall be inserted "Subject to regulation 4C,".

    (4) After regulation 4B there shall be inserted the following regulation -

Amendment of the Occupational Pension Schemes (Deficiency on Winding Up, etc.) Regulations
    
3.  - (1) The Occupational Pension Schemes (Deficiency on Winding Up, etc.) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996[7] shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (5).

    (2) In regulation 3(1)[8] (calculation of the value of scheme liabilities and assets) for "regulations 3A and 3B" there shall be substituted "regulations 3A to 3D".

    (3) In regulation 3B(1)[9] (valuation of liabilities where employer not insolvent and where winding up commences on or after 11th June 2003) at the beginning there shall be inserted "Subject to regulation 3C,".

    (4) After regulation 3B there shall be inserted the following regulations -

    (5) In Schedule 1 (form of actuary's certificate), in the Note at the end of the form of certificate, for "does not reflect the cost" there shall be substituted "may not reflect the actual cost".

Amendment of the Occupational Pension Schemes (Transfer Values) Regulations
    
4. In regulation 11 of the Occupational Pension Schemes (Transfer Values) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996[10] (disclosure) -

Revocations
     5. Regulations 2(2) and 3(2) of the Occupational Pension Schemes (Winding Up and Deficiency on Winding Up, etc.) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2004[11] are hereby revoked.



Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department for Social Development on


21st January 2005.

L.S.


John O'Neill
A senior officer of the Department for Social Development


EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations.)


These Regulations make amendments to the Occupational Pension Schemes (Winding Up) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 ("the Winding Up Regulations"), the Occupational Pension Schemes (Deficiency on Winding Up, etc.) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 ("the Deficiency on Winding Up Regulations") and the Occupational Pension Schemes (Transfer Values) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 ("the Transfer Values Regulations").

Regulation 1 provides for citation and commencement.

Regulation 2 amends regulations 4 and 4B of, and inserts regulation 4C into, the Winding Up Regulations and regulation 3 amends regulations 3 and 3A of, and inserts regulations 3C and 3D into, the Deficiency on Winding Up Regulations to provide for the calculation of liabilities in the case of any occupational pension scheme to which Article 75 of the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 ("the Order") applies and apply to schemes which begin to wind up on or after 15th February 2005 ("the commencement date") and where the date by reference to which the liabilities and assets of the scheme are determined, calculated and verified falls on or after the commencement date. The inserted regulation 3D of the Deficiency on Winding Up Regulations applies to multi-employer schemes where the scheme is not being wound up but the employer becomes insolvent on or after the commencement date.

Regulation 4C of the Winding Up Regulations and regulations 3C and 3D of the Deficiency on Winding Up Regulations require the scheme's liabilities to be calculated and valued on a basis which assumes that any accrued rights to a pension or other benefit under the scheme for members with more than two years of pensionable service, as well as any entitlement to the payment of a pension that has arisen under the scheme (including any increase in a pension), will be discharged by the purchase of annuities.

Regulation 4 amends regulation 11 of the Transfer Values Regulations to require trustees who receive a request for a statement of entitlement to a guaranteed cash equivalent to inform the member, where the scheme is being wound up, that the value of the member's guaranteed cash equivalent may be affected by the scheme winding up, that a decision to take a guaranteed cash equivalent should be given careful consideration, and that the member should consider taking independent financial advice before deciding whether to take the guaranteed cash equivalent.

Regulation 5 makes consequential revocations.

As these Regulations make in relation to Northern Ireland only provision corresponding to provision contained in regulations made by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in relation to Great Britain, the requirement for consultation under Article 117(1) of the Order does not apply by virtue of paragraph (2)(e) of that Article.

An assessment of the cost to business of these Regulations is detailed in a Regulatory Impact Assessment, copies of which have been laid in the Business Office and the Library of the Northern Ireland Assembly. Copies of the Assessment are available from the Department for Social Development, Social Security Policy and Legislation Division, Room 5, Block 5, Stormont Estate, Upper Newtownards Road, Belfast BT4 3SJ.


Notes:

[1] 1993 c. 49; section 109 was amended by section 48 of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act (Northern Ireland) 2000 (c. 4)back

[2] S.I. 1995/3213 (N.I. 22); Article 73(3) was amended by Article 35(1) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/3147 (N.I. 11)) and modified by regulation 3 of S.R. 1996 No. 621 as amended by regulation 4(3) of S.R. 2000 No. 335 and regulation 3 of S.R. 2004 No. 187 and Article 75 was modified by regulation 4 of S.R. 1996 No. 585 as amended by paragraph 9(3) of the Schedule to S.R. 1997 No. 160back

[3] See Article 8(b) of S.R. 1999 No. 481back

[4] S.R. 1996 No. 621; relevant amending regulations are S.R. 2002 No. 64 and S.R. 2004 No. 60back

[5] Regulation 4(1) was amended by regulation 4(2) of S.R. 2002 No. 64 and regulation 2(2) of S.R. 2004 No. 60back

[6] Regulation 4B was inserted by regulation 2(5) of S.R. 2004 No. 60back

[7] S.R. 1996 No. 585; relevant amending regulations are S.R. 2002 No. 64 and S.R. 2004 No. 60back

[8] Regulation 3(1) was amended by regulation 3(2) of S.R. 2002 No. 64 and regulation 3(2) of S.R. 2004 No. 60back

[9] Regulation 3B was inserted by regulation 3(4) of S.R. 2004 No. 60back

[10] S.R. 1996 No. 619 to which there are amendments not relevant to these Regulationsback

[11] S.R. 2004 No. 60back



ISBN 0 337 95810 6


  © Crown copyright 2005

Prepared 2 February 2005


BAILII: Copyright Policy | Disclaimers | Privacy Policy | Feedback | Donate to BAILII
URL: http://www.bailii.org/nie/legis/num_reg/2005/20050020.html