For a few days now, I have been expecting the DWP to announce their response to the recent Consultation on pension charges. Those that have been following this story will be aware that this response is pivotal for employers and the pensions industry, as it will shape decisions on which schemes can be used for Pensions Auto-Enrolment (AE) purposes, and also indicate if many schemes that have already been utilised will have to be unravelled to comply with the new edict.
But a news items today directed me towards the Regulatory Policy Committee (RPC). I must admit that this was a branch of Government that has not previously crossed my radar (or that of many of our followers I should think), so let’s start off with a quote from their website:
“We provide the government with external, independent scrutiny of new regulatory and deregulatory proposals.”
Which seems fairly self-explanatory.
The news item from Employee Benefits Magazine can be viewed here:
And following the link through will take you to the RPC opinion on the Charges Consultation. The Overall Assessment is “RED” - which gives a clue as to the direction of travel. And the opening paragraph reads as follows:
“The IA [Impact Assessment] is not fit for purpose. In particular, the evidence presented does not adequately demonstrate why Option 3 is considered to have a zero net impact on the pensions industry. In addition, robust estimates for all options need to be presented, so that consultees, and ultimately the final policy decision, are informed effectively.”
As you will see from the article, it looks like DWP are not accepting this summary, but it will be interesting to see if this then leaves any room for a legal challenge to whatever the actual outcomes of the consultation are. On indeed any additional delays to the consultations itself.
At the very least, this will only serve to cloud an already overcast picture of complexity and uncertainty. We shall have to wait and see.
Best regards
Steve
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