Consultation regarding a draft Statutory Instrument (SI) covering the:
This EPN has been provided to announce the launch of a consultation covering two main areas of focus: the prospective changes for the 2015 Remedy (also known as McCloud) and member contributions.
In 2015 all public sector pension schemes were reformed and new career average schemes were introduced. These reforms also saw the introduction of transitional protection that meant those members within 10 years of their normal pension age could remain in the legacy schemes for a period of time.
In 2018 the Court of Appeal identified the transitional protection as discriminatory based on age. This called for the 2015 Remedy to remove this discrimination that resulted in the publication of the HM Treasury-led Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Bill earlier this year.
To ensure the legislation dictated in the Bill is followed, scheme-level legislation is required to move all remaining active members of the legacy schemes into the reformed scheme (alpha) from 1 April 2022. This will mean the discrimination is removed as all members will be in the same position.
There will be additional scheme-level legislation next year which deals with the remainder of the 2015 Remedy work.
The Civil Service (and Others) Pension Scheme (CSOPS) - also known as alpha - is set out in the Public Service (Civil Servants and Others) Pension Regulations 2014. The Scheme makes provisions for contributions payable by scheme members up to 31 March 2022. It is silent on member contribution rates from 1 April 2022, and provisions need to be made for this.
The proposed legislation has the effect of extending the current contribution rates for a one year period from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023.
Information on this consultation can be found here.
If you wish to publicise this with scheme members, details of the dates and how to respond can be seen below.
Opening date: 22 November 2021 (09:00)
Closing date: 17 January 2022 (23:00)
cspsconsultation@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
Or write to:
CSPS Consultation,
Cabinet Office,
Priestley House,
Priestley Road,
Basingstoke,
RG24 9NW
Opening date: 22 November 2021 (09:00)
Closing date: 17 January 2022 (23:00)
If you have any questions please contact cspsconsultation@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.
If you have a question about the distribution of EPNs, or would like to receive them in a different format, please contact EPN@MyCSP.co.uk.
You can find electronic copies of the Employer Pension Guide, all current EPNs and forms in the Employer section of the Civil Service Pensions website.
This notice is for employers and should not be issued to scheme members.
Members can find information about their pension by visiting the member's section.