Current Issues - July 2024

See excerpts from this month’s articles below, and to read more, download our latest current issues.

Electioneering

All but the most resolutely news-averse will know that a general election is imminent, on 4 July 2024. In the period since the announcement, the political parties have set out their stalls with the publication of manifestos. Without wishing to seem like single-issue voters, we thought we should bring together in one place the pensions-related promises that have been made.

Tribunal tide turns against Regulator

A couple of recent First-tier Tribunal (FTT) rulings contain surprising judicial responses to the Pensions Regulator’s compliance and enforcement practices in automatic-enrolment cases. In both cases, the employers contended that they had not received the notices sent to them by the Regulator—and were successful. (There’s another FTT reversal, on a different subject, elsewhere in this month’s news.)

Chair’s statement fining not fully mandatory

In a recent decision about the annual governance (Chair’s) statement requirements for money purchase schemes, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) has pushed back against the Pensions Regulator’s interpretation of the law. The FTT judge rejected the Regulator's argument that the imposition of penalties for statement breaches is entirely automatic under the legislation. The trustee’s success on that point may be cold comfort to him, however, as the fine in this case was upheld.

Ombudsman falls back to ‘IDRP-first’ position

A blog post written by Dominic Harris, the Pensions Ombudsman, gives the outcome of a review of his office’s operating model. It foreshadows a return to insisting that members attempt to resolve problems via their schemes’ internal dispute resolution processes (IDRPs) before turning to the Ombudsman for help.

Public sector update

Updates on the McCloud tax newsletter and staff transfers. 

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This communication has been compiled by Hymans Robertson LLP® (HR) as a general information summary and is based on its understanding of events as at the date of publication, which may be subject to change. It is not to be relied upon for investment or financial decisions and is not a substitute for professional advice (including for legal, investment or tax advice) on specific circumstances. HR accepts no liability for errors or omissions or reliance on any statement or opinion. Where we have relied upon data provided by third parties, reasonable care has been taken to assess its accuracy however we provide no guarantee and accept no liability in respect of any errors made by any third party.