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1718109

registered interest
date	14/05/2024
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, following the Written Answer by Viscount Younger of Leckie on 24 April (HL3731), what discussions officials have had with occupational pension schemes and their advisers about the flaws in climate scenario modelling by pension schemes and the impact on beneficiaries, whether as part of the post-implementation review of the Occupational Pension Schemes (Climate Change Governance and Reporting) Regulations 2021 or otherwise.
tabling member printed	Lord Davies of Brixton
uin	HL4621
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2024 answer text <p><strong> </strong></p><p>It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.</p> answering member printed Viscount Younger of Leckie question first answered 24/05/2024 11:47:11 answering member 4169 label Biography information for Viscount Younger of Leckie
tabling member	4893 label Biography information for Lord Davies of Brixton

1650124

registered interest
date	04/07/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government under what statutory provisions they have powers to legislate (1) to require occupational pension schemes to report on their impacts on water, circular economy, pollution and biodiversity, and (2) to clarify occupational pension schemes’ fiduciary duties.
tabling member printed	Baroness Hayman
uin	HL9028
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2023 answer text <p>The Government already requires occupational pension schemes over a certain size to report in line with the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures recommendations.</p><p> </p><p>With regards to fiduciary duties, The Pension Regulator already provides guidance setting out that climate-related risks should be managed alongside other risks that trustees consider as part of their fiduciary duties.</p> answering member printed Viscount Younger of Leckie question first answered 17/07/2023 13:56:45 answering member 4169 label Biography information for Viscount Younger of Leckie
tabling member	1649 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman

1612586

registered interest
date	19/04/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of (1) men, and (2) women, who earn less than £12,570 in any one job, who are members of auto-enrolment workplace pension schemes which operate on a Net Pay basis.
tabling member printed	Baroness Altmann
uin	HL7260
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/05/2023 answer text <p>DWP do not hold this data.</p><p> </p><p>A policy paper has been published showing the number of people who save into an occupational pension under net pay arrangements whose taxable pay is below the personal allowance is estimated to be 1.2 million in 2026-27. In 2023/24, the Personal Allowance is £12,570.</p><p> </p><p>Women are estimated to make up 75% of those earning below the personal allowance and contributing to a pension scheme that uses net pay arrangements. The 1.2 million can therefore be broken down into around 0.3 million men and 0.9 million women.</p><p> </p><p>Notes:</p><ul><li>These figures were produced for accrual in 2026-27 and the Personal Allowance at the time was not set to £12,570 in that tax year.</li><li>These figures look at total pay across jobs and less contributions to Net Pay Arrangements, so it is possible that someone with total earnings above the Personal Allowance is included because removing their Net Pay Arrangement contributions takes them below the Personal Allowance or someone earns less than the Personal Allowance in a single job but their pay across jobs takes them above the Personal Allowance.</li><li>These figures were produced for the Autumn Budget 2021 fiscal event using the 2018-19 SPI projected using Autumn Budget 2021 OBR determinants.</li><li>Further detail can be found at the source which is linked below.</li></ul><p> </p><p>Source: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/low-earners-anomaly-pensions-relief-relating-to-net-pay-arrangements/pensions-relief-relating-to-net-pay-arrangements" target="_blank">Pensions relief relating to net pay arrangements - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a></p> answering member printed Viscount Younger of Leckie question first answered 03/05/2023 11:38:17 answering member 4169 label Biography information for Viscount Younger of Leckie
tabling member	4533 label Biography information for Baroness Altmann

1585188

registered interest
date	07/02/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to automatically enrol workers who are (1) low paid, or (2) aged under 22, into a workplace pension scheme, given the increased cost of living.
tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
uin	HL5528
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/02/2023 answer text <p>The 2017 Review of Automatic Enrolment (AE) sets out our ambition to remove the Lower Earnings Limit so that pension contributions are payable from the first pound of earnings and reduce the qualifying age for AE to 18. This will help young people and lower earners, including many women, to build financial resilience through generating more meaningful retirement savings.</p><p>We remain committed to the implementation of the 2017 Review ambitions in the mid-2020s.</p><p>We have always been clear that changes to the AE framework would be made in a way and at a time that is affordable, balancing the needs of savers, employers and taxpayers.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Viscount Younger of Leckie question first answered 21/02/2023 11:51:06 answering member 4169 label Biography information for Viscount Younger of Leckie
tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1436316

registered interest
date	28/02/2022
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) pension products are available for automatic enrolment pensions; what assessment they have made of the impact of financial services regulations on the number of ESG pension products available for automatic enrolment pensions; and what steps they are taking to increase the number of ESG pension products available for automatic enrolment purposes.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL6479
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/03/2022 answer text <p>The department has introduced ESG-related legislation, including regulations aligned with the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), requiring trustees to consider, assess and report on the financial risks of climate change within their portfolios.</p><p> </p><p>These measures go beyond merely reporting a climate policy and how it is implemented. They require trustees to put in place climate-related governance and risk management, to assess the impact of climate change on their investment strategy, to conduct scenario analysis, to set targets.</p><p> </p><p>This means that automatic enrolment schemes will be encouraged to consider climate-related risks and opportunities, and this is likely to influence their choice of products in their portfolio. The Government thinks that ESG factors and their impact should be taken into consideration where financially material, but the process of investing in individual products is down to the market and trustees working within their fiduciary duty.</p><p> </p><p>I recognise the risk of ‘greenwashing’, where investors can be misled on the quality of a product described as being an ESG product and this must be tackled. To aid trustees in their decisions, the department participates in an advisory group which supports the Financial Conduct Authority in developing their proposed requirements that certain investment products display a label reflecting their sustainability characteristics.</p><p> </p><p>Recent research carried out by Corporate Advisor in their ‘ESG in DC Pensions’ report found that 19 out of 21 pension providers surveyed deploy ESG tilts or screening overlays on their default funds excluding specific companies or sectors with poor ESG ratings<sup><sup>[1]</sup></sup>. The report found that three years ago, just five master trust defaults took this approach, suggesting that schemes are increasingly turning to ESG-related products. I believe the steps the department has taken to put in place the regulatory framework for consideration of ESG factors will have contributed to the uptake here.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Stedman-Scott question first answered 11/03/2022 14:38:48 answering member 4174 label Biography information for Baroness Stedman-Scott
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1385988

registered interest
date	07/12/2021
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to encourage employers to calculate their gender pension contributions gap in order to compare this to their gender pay gap data.
tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
uin	HL4772
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/12/2021 answer text <p>In 2017, the government introduced regulations requiring large employers to publish the differences in average salaries and bonuses for men and women. The regulations have helped to motivate employers; placing the gender pay gap at the top of the agenda and prompting conversations within businesses about workplace equality.</p><p> </p><p>Employers are now focussed on understanding and tackling the causes of the gaps in their organisations. Reporting has been a vital part of getting everyone to take the first step.</p><p> </p><p>Alongside this, the government is continuing to work closely with employers, their representative bodies and regulators to build understanding on this issue.</p> answering member printed Baroness Stedman-Scott question first answered 17/12/2021 14:24:32 answering member 4174 label Biography information for Baroness Stedman-Scott
tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1314142

registered interest
date	12/05/2021
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government where responsibility lies for the monitoring of pension scheme charges in automatic enrolment workplace schemes.
tabling member printed	Baroness Altmann
uin	HL124
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2021 answer text <p>As part of the introduction of automatic enrolment, requirements were put in place, under the Pensions Act 2008, to ensure that workplace pension schemes selected by an employer to meet their obligations satisfy certain quality and governance standards. The Pensions Regulator enforces employer compliance with the Automatic Enrolment duties.</p><p>The Government regularly undertakes public consultations on private pensions policy and encourages all interested parties, including scheme members to submit their views. <br></p><p>In 2020, the department undertook a review of the charge cap and accompanying Pensions Charges Survey. The review concluded that the current level of the charge cap remained appropriate at 0.75 per cent of funds under management within the default arrangement, or an equivalent combination charge.</p><p>On 24th May, the department launched a public consultation looking at Permitted Charges within DC Pensions. The consultation seeks views on a proposal to move to a universal charging structure within the charge cap to improve member comprehension of charges, and in turn better enable members to compare pension products if they wish. This consultation also confirms our intention to set a de Minimis on the charging of flats fees within the cap. This will help limit the erosion of small pots of £100 or less, where a flat fee is charged.</p><p /><p /> answering member printed Baroness Stedman-Scott grouped question UIN HL125 HL126 question first answered 24/05/2021 10:52:58 answering member 4174 label Biography information for Baroness Stedman-Scott
tabling member	4533 label Biography information for Baroness Altmann

1314143

registered interest
date	12/05/2021
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps members of workplace pension schemes can take if they consider their employer scheme charges are excessively high.
tabling member printed	Baroness Altmann
uin	HL125
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2021 answer text <p>As part of the introduction of automatic enrolment, requirements were put in place, under the Pensions Act 2008, to ensure that workplace pension schemes selected by an employer to meet their obligations satisfy certain quality and governance standards. The Pensions Regulator enforces employer compliance with the Automatic Enrolment duties.</p><p>The Government regularly undertakes public consultations on private pensions policy and encourages all interested parties, including scheme members to submit their views. <br></p><p>In 2020, the department undertook a review of the charge cap and accompanying Pensions Charges Survey. The review concluded that the current level of the charge cap remained appropriate at 0.75 per cent of funds under management within the default arrangement, or an equivalent combination charge.</p><p>On 24th May, the department launched a public consultation looking at Permitted Charges within DC Pensions. The consultation seeks views on a proposal to move to a universal charging structure within the charge cap to improve member comprehension of charges, and in turn better enable members to compare pension products if they wish. This consultation also confirms our intention to set a de Minimis on the charging of flats fees within the cap. This will help limit the erosion of small pots of £100 or less, where a flat fee is charged.</p><p /><p /> answering member printed Baroness Stedman-Scott grouped question UIN HL124 HL126 question first answered 24/05/2021 10:52:58 answering member 4174 label Biography information for Baroness Stedman-Scott
tabling member	4533 label Biography information for Baroness Altmann

1314144

registered interest
date	12/05/2021
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to protect members of workplace pension schemes whose employers have not selected a suitable scheme.
tabling member printed	Baroness Altmann
uin	HL126
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2021 answer text <p>As part of the introduction of automatic enrolment, requirements were put in place, under the Pensions Act 2008, to ensure that workplace pension schemes selected by an employer to meet their obligations satisfy certain quality and governance standards. The Pensions Regulator enforces employer compliance with the Automatic Enrolment duties.</p><p>The Government regularly undertakes public consultations on private pensions policy and encourages all interested parties, including scheme members to submit their views. <br></p><p>In 2020, the department undertook a review of the charge cap and accompanying Pensions Charges Survey. The review concluded that the current level of the charge cap remained appropriate at 0.75 per cent of funds under management within the default arrangement, or an equivalent combination charge.</p><p>On 24th May, the department launched a public consultation looking at Permitted Charges within DC Pensions. The consultation seeks views on a proposal to move to a universal charging structure within the charge cap to improve member comprehension of charges, and in turn better enable members to compare pension products if they wish. This consultation also confirms our intention to set a de Minimis on the charging of flats fees within the cap. This will help limit the erosion of small pots of £100 or less, where a flat fee is charged.</p><p /><p /> answering member printed Baroness Stedman-Scott grouped question UIN HL124 HL125 question first answered 24/05/2021 10:52:58 answering member 4174 label Biography information for Baroness Stedman-Scott
tabling member	4533 label Biography information for Baroness Altmann

1177103

registered interest
date	07/02/2020
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Workplace Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what duties the trustees of non-associated multi-employer pension schemes have to employers contributing to the scheme; and whether all such employers have a right to be consulted when trustees grant apportionment arrangements to departing employers.
tabling member printed	Baroness Altmann
uin	HL1428
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/02/2020 answer text <p>The employer debt legislation (section 75 of the Pensions Act 1995 and the Occupational Pension Schemes (Employer Debt) Regulations 2005) sets out the requirements on departing employers where any shortfall between liabilities and assets in a Defined Benefit pension scheme is treated as due.</p><p> </p><p>Trustees of all occupational pension schemes including non-associated multi-employer pension schemes have a duty to employers contributing to the scheme to ensure that the scheme is correctly administered in accordance with its rules and that the promised benefits are paid. Where a restructuring event takes place, trustees are required to consult the exiting employer and receiving employer about the likelihood of the receiving employer being able to meet all the exiting employer’s liabilities in relation to the scheme. The trustees must also notify the exiting and receiving employer (in writing) of their decision as to whether they consider the receiving employer capable of meeting all the exiting employer’s liabilities to the scheme.</p><p> </p><p>Whilst there is no general requirement for trustees to consult employers when granting apportionment arrangements to departing employers, the Occupational Pension Schemes (Employer Debt) Regulations 2005 require the consent of employers within the scheme when trustees grant Regulated Apportionment Arrangements, Scheme Apportionment Arrangements and Flexible Apportionment Arrangements to departing employers.</p><p> </p><p>The Government’s Green and subsequent White Paper on Defined Benefit pension schemes looked very closely at this issue and considered carefully what could be done to relieve the pressure some employers face from their obligation to pay an employer debt.</p><p> </p><p>The White Paper concluded that the existing arrangements in legislation, along with the deferred debt arrangement introduced in April 2018, provide enough flexibility for employers to manage their employer debts and the current “full-buyout” calculation method is the most secure and effective way of protecting members and remaining employers in a multi-employer scheme.</p> answering member printed Baroness Stedman-Scott question first answered 19/02/2020 13:02:46 answering member 4174 label Biography information for Baroness Stedman-Scott
tabling member	4533 label Biography information for Baroness Altmann