Statutory Instrument 2001 No. 770

      The Local Government Pension Scheme (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2001

       

      © Crown Copyright 2001

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STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS

2001 No. 770

PENSIONS

The Local Government Pension Scheme (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2001

  Made 7th March 2001  
  Laid before Parliament 12th March 2001  
  Coming into force 2nd April 2001  

The Secretary of State, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 7 and 12 of the Superannuation Act 1972[1] and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, after consultation with such associations of local authorities as appeared to him to be concerned, the local authorities with whom consultation appeared to him to be desirable and such representatives of other persons likely to be affected by the Regulations as appeared to him to be appropriate, hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation, commencement and interpretation
     1.  - (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Local Government Pension Scheme (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2001.

    (2) These Regulations shall come into force on 2nd April 2001 but - 

    (a) regulations 5, 8, 24 and 26 shall have effect from 1st April 1998;

    (b) regulations 4(a), 20 and 21 shall have effect from 1st October 1999;

    (c) regulations 3, 4(b) and (c) and 25 shall have effect from 13th January 2000.

    (3) In regulation 29, expressions which are also used in the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997[2] have the same meaning as they have in those Regulations and "best value arrangement" shall have the meaning given to that expression in regulation 5(17) (b) of those Regulations.

Amendment of the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997
     2. The Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997 shall be amended in accordance with regulations 3 to 27 of these Regulations.

Agreements to enable employees of non-Scheme employers to be members
     3. In regulation 5[3] - 

    (a) after paragraph (3)(g) insert the sub-paragraph - 

      " (ga) a company for the time being subject to the influence of a body listed in Schedule 2 (other than a local authority) as described in section 69 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989[4] as if references in that section to a local authority were references to the listed body;";

    (b) in paragraph (8), after "eligible employees of the transferee admission body" insert "specified by that body"; and

    (c) in paragraph (17)(j) - 

      (i) after sub-paragraph (i) delete "or",

      (ii) after sub-paragraph (ii) add - 

        " (iii) not referred to in sub-paragraph (i) or (ii) but is a party to the best value arrangement, or

        (iv) a body or authority which performs the functions referred to in the section 15 direction or the section 497A directions".

       

     

Further restrictions on eligibility
     4. In regulation 6[5] - 

    (a) in paragraph (1), at the beginning insert "Subject to regulation 130C";

    (b) in paragraph (3), delete from "unless" to the end of that paragraph; and

    (c) delete paragraphs (4) to (8).

Periods of membership: "total membership"
     5. In regulation 9(2), after "regulations 10, 11 and 32" insert ", Schedule 4".

Normal retirement
     6. In regulation 25 - 

Other early leavers: deferred retirement benefits and election for early payment
     7. In regulation 31(7) for "payable from his NRD without reduction" substitute "without reduction, payable from his NRD or from such earlier date on or after his 60th birthday as the member elects on which the sum of the items referred to in sub-paragraphs (a) to (c) of paragraph (4) is 85 years or more".

Re-employed and rejoining deferred members
     8. In regulation 32 - 

Concurrent employments
     9. After regulation 32, insert - 

Meaning of "eligible child"
     10. In regulation 44, for sub-paragraph (1), substitute - 

Payments to increase total membership
     11. In regulation 55, for paragraph (10) substitute - 

Election for pension in lieu of retirement grant
     12. In regulation 58(1), delete the words "has attained the age of 50 and".

Retirement benefits
     13. In regulation 64(2), for "as soon as reasonably practicable" substitute "at any time prior to the 75th birthday of the member".

Special circumstances where revised actuarial valuations and certificates must be obtained
     14. In regulation 78, for paragraph (2A)[6] substitute - 

        " (2A) But where it is not possible for any reason to obtain revised contributions from the outgoing admission body, or from an insurer or any person providing a guarantee or indemnity on behalf of that admission body, the administering authority may obtain a further revision of any rates and adjustment certificate for the fund, showing - 

      (a) in the case where the outgoing admission body is a transferee admission body within the meaning of regulation 5(17)(i), the revised contributions due from the body which is the transferor Scheme employer within the meaning of regulation 5(17)(j) in relation to that outgoing admission body, and

      (b) in any other case, the revised contributions due from each employing authority who contributes to the fund.".

     

Rights to return of contributions
     15. In regulation 87(4), for the words "to such period of membership as is appropriate in accordance with guidance issued by the Government Actuary" substitute - 

Notice of decision by appointed person under regulation 100
     16. In regulation 101(3) - 

 

Notice of decisions by the Secretary of State where a disagreement is referred to him
     17. In regulation 103(3)(e), for "difficulties which they have failed to resolve with the Secretary of State" substitute "any difficulty with the Scheme which remains unresolved".

Right to count credited period
     18. In regulation 122(4), after "and his NRD" insert "or, if earlier, the date on or after the member's 60th birthday on which the sum of the items referred to in sub-paragraphs (a) to (c) of regulation 31(4) is 85 years or more".

Changes of fund
     19. In regulation 125 - 

 

        " (3) Where paragraph (2) applies as respects 10 or more members by virtue of a single event, the amount of the payment under that paragraph shall be determined by agreement between the actuary appointed by the administering authority by which the payment must be made and the actuary appointed by the administering authority to which it must be made.

        (3A) Where the actuaries cannot agree on the amount within 12 months of the date of transfer or, where there is more than one date of transfer, the date of the last transfer which relates to the single event, the matter shall be referred to a third actuary, chosen by agreement between the actuaries or, in default of agreement, by the President of the Institute of Actuaries, and his determination shall be final.

        (3B) The costs of determining the amount to be transferred shall be paid in equal shares by the members' former appropriate fund and the members' new appropriate fund.".

Eligibility
     20. After regulation 130B[8], insert the following - 

Rent Officers
     21. In regulation 131, after paragraph (9), insert the following - 

        " (9A) A person who has been appointed as a rent officer in England in pursuance of a scheme under section 63 of the Rent Act 1977[10] must be treated after 30th September 1999 as being in employment with the London Pensions Fund Authority.

        (9B) This paragraph applies to a person who - 

      (a) was, or was eligible to be, an active member of the Scheme on 30th September 1999 by reason of his appointment as a rent officer; and

      (b) is appointed on or after 1st October 1999 as a rent officer in England by the Secretary of State in pursuance of his powers under the Administration of the Rent Officer Service (England) Order 1999[11]

    without a break in the continuity of the appointment referred to in sub-paragraph (a).

        (9C) For the purposes of paragraph (9B), "a break in the continuity of appointment" means a period of more than one month when the person was not appointed as a rent officer.

        (9D) A person to whom paragraph (9B) applies is eligible to remain or become a member of the Scheme and must be treated as being in employment with the London Pensions Fund Authority.".

Separate employments etc.
     22. In regulation 132(2) - 

Former members of the Metropolitan Civil Staffs Superannuation Scheme
     23. For regulation 144A[13] substitute - 

Persons employed in the Meat Hygiene Service
     24. After regulation 144A, insert - 

Definitions
     25. In Schedule 1, in the definition of "admission body" for "5(8)" substitute "5(3)".

Excluded membership
     26. In Schedule 3, in the second column of paragraph 3 of the Table, after "All regulations" add "but see regulation 32(5)(aa)".

Former members of the Metropolitan Civil Staffs Superannuation Scheme
     27. After Schedule 6, add the Schedule 7 set out in the Schedule to these Regulations.

The Local Government Pension Scheme (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 1997
     28. The Local Government Pension Scheme (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 1997[15] shall be amended by the insertion after regulation 18 of the following regulation - 

Admission agreements
     29.  - (1) This Regulation applies where - 

    (2) Where this regulation applies, the admission agreement may provide that a period of employment by the transferee admission body before the date of the agreement counts as a period of membership for the purposes of the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997 for the employees covered by the admission agreement.

    (3) The period of employment shall be such period as the actuary to the relevant fund shall determine.

    (4) The condition referred to in paragraph (1) is that the transferee admission body pays into the relevant fund increased contributions to meet the cost of the increase in membership.

Right to opt out
     30.  - (1) Where - 

then the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997 and The Local Government Pension Scheme (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 1997 shall have effect in relation to him as if those amendments had never been made.

    (2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), a relevant beneficiary is a person to whom any benefit is or may become payable being a benefit payable to or in respect of a person who - 

    (a) ceased to hold an employment in respect of which he was a member (whether or not he had subsequently recommenced any such employment), or

    (b) died while in such employment,

before the date on which these Regulations come into force.

Revocations
     31. Regulations 14(b) of the Local Government Pension Scheme (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 1999[17], regulation 6(b) of the Local Government Pension Scheme (Amendment etc.) Regulations 1999[18] and regulation 7 of the Local Government Pension Scheme (Greater London Authority etc.) Regulations 2000[19] are revoked.



Signed by authority of the Secretary of State


Beverley Hughes
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions

7th March 2001



SCHEDULE
Regulation 27


SCHEDULE TO THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT PENSION SCHEME REGULATIONS 1997


EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)


Regulations 2 to 27 amend the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997 which comprise the Local Government Pension Scheme ("the Scheme"). Certain of the regulations take effect on various dates before the Regulations come into force (as set out in regulation 1).

The amendments are - 

Regulation 3 makes certain amendments to regulation 5 (admission agreements). These enable employees of a wider category of bodies, who are not Scheme employers and who provide services or assets in connection with the exercise of a function of a Scheme employer, to become members of the Scheme;

Regulation 4 amends regulation 6 by removing the provision allowing entry to the Scheme after age 65.

Regulation 5 makes a minor drafting amendment to regulation 9(2) (periods of membership).

Regulations 6 and 7 clarify the provisions in connection with the normal retirement age under the Scheme and early retirement. Regulation 6 amends regulation 25 defining normal retirement and regulation 7 amends regulation 31 dealing with early leavers. Regulation 11, which amends regulation 55 (payments to increase total membership), and regulation 18, which amends regulation 122 (right to count credited period), make amendments consequential upon these changes.

Regulation 8 amends regulation 32 to clarify the treatment of aggregated and non-aggregated periods of membership. Regulation 26 makes a consequential amendment to the Table in Schedule 3 (Excluded Membership).

Regulation 9 adds a new regulation 32A (concurrent employments) to provide a method of calculating membership where one of two concurrent employments terminates and the member elects to keep the periods of service aggregated for the purposes of calculating benefits.

Regulation 10 amends regulation 44, which defines an eligible child for the purpose of children's pension rights. Also the test of financial dependency required in the case of a child who is not the legitimate or adopted child of a member is extended to include a child born after the death of a member, who would have been dependent on that member had the member not died before the birth.

Regulation 12 amends regulation 58 and removes the requirement for a member to be 50 before he can exercise the right to elect for pension in lieu of retirement grant.

Regulation 13 amends regulation 64 (use of additional voluntary contributions) to allow a longer period after retirement before the value of the additional voluntary contributions must be used to pay for a pension. This is to take advantage of a change in Inland Revenue practice.

Regulation 14 amends regulation 78 (special circumstances where a revised actuarial valuation and certificate must be obtained) to allow the actuary to provide, in certain circumstances, that where an outgoing admission body cannot pay revised contributions to a fund, that liability is borne by the Scheme employer who is a party to the admission agreement.

Regulation 15 amends regulation 87 (rights to return of contributions) by substituting a formula for the calculation of the period of membership the contributions can buy for the existing provision that the period will be calculated in accordance with guidance issued by the Government Actuary.

Regulations 16 and 17 amend provisions in regulations 101 and 103 respectively (resolution of disputes) in connection with the information which must be given to members about the Pensions Advisory Service in the internal dispute resolution procedure. These changes are necessitated by the Occupational Pension Schemes (Disclosure of Information) Regulations 1999 (S.I.1999/3198).

Regulation 19 amends regulation 125 (changes of fund) to provide that where a transfer involves ten or more members, the calculation of the transfer amount is to be by way of agreement between fund actuaries with reference to a third actuary to resolve disagreements.

Regulations 20 and 21 make provision in connection with Rent Service Agency staff and rent officers respectively following reorganisation of that Service.

Regulation 22 amends the terminology used in regulation 132 (separate employments) in references to various elections.

Regulation 23 replaces provisions in connection with former members of the Metropolitan Civil Staffs Superannuation Scheme. It refers to the new Schedule added to the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997 as Schedule 7 by regulation 27 of these regulations.

Regulation 24 makes special provision, by adding a new regulation, for members employed in the Meat Hygiene Service who were previously members of the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme.

Regulation 25 makes a minor drafting amendment to Schedule 1.

Regulation 28 amends the Local Government Pension Scheme (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 1997 by adding a provision allowing a person who was a deferred member of the Scheme on 31st March 1998 to elect for a pension in lieu of his retirement grant or to elect for a lump sum in lieu of part of his pension.

Regulation 29 makes provision in connection with an admission agreement where the admission body provides services or assets in connection with the exercise of a function of a Scheme employer. In the circumstances set out in that regulation, it allows a certain period of employment to count as a period of membership for the purposes of the Scheme.

Section 12 of the Superannuation Act 1972 provides that regulations made under section 7 of that Act may have retrospective effect. Regulation 30 allows certain persons who would be placed in a worse position by amendments made in these Regulations to elect for the amendments not to apply in their case.

Regulation 31 is a revoking provision.

Notes:

[1] 1972 c. 11; section 12 was amended by section 10 of the Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1990 (c. 7).back

[2] S.I. 1997/1612, amended by S.I. 1998/1238, 2118, 1999/1212, 3438, 2000/1005, 1164, 3025.back

[3] Regulation 5 was substituted by S.I. 1999/3438, regulation 3 and amended by S.I. 2000/1005, regulation 3.back

[4] 1989 c. 42.back

[5] Regulation 6 was amended by S.I. 1999/1212, regulation 5 and S.I. 1999/3438, regulation 4.back

[6] Paragraph (2A) of regulation 78 was inserted by S.I. 1999/1212, regulation 14 and amended by S.I. 1999/3438, regulation 6.back

[7] OPAS Limited is a company limited by guarantee under the Companies Act 1985 (c. 6): registered number 2459671.back

[8] Regulation 130B was inserted by S.I. 2000/1164, regulation 5.back

[9] S.I. 1999/2511.back

[10] 1977 c. 42; section 63 was amended by sections 120 and 140(2) of, Part I of Schedule 14 to, and Schedule 18 to, the Housing Act 1988 (c. 50); subsection (9), as added by paragraph 13(3) of Schedule 8 to the Local Government and Housing Act 1985 (c. 51), was substituted by regulations 2 and 4 of the Local Government Changes (Rent Act) Regulations 1995 (S.I. 1995/2451). There are other amendments to section 63 not relevant to this instrument.back

[11] S.I. 1999/2403.back

[12] 1978 c. 10.back

[13] Regulation 144A was inserted by S.I. 2000/1164, regulation 7.back

[14] Paragraph (5) was added to regulation 27 by S.I. 1999/1212, regulation 10(b).back

[15] S.I. 1997/1613, amended by S.I. 1998/2118, 1999/1212.back

[16] Regulation 5 was substituted by S.I. 1999/3438, regulation 3 and amended by S.I. 2000/1005, regulation 3.back

[17] S.I. 1999/1212.back

[18] S.I. 1999/3438.back

[19] S.I. 2000/1164.back

[20] Schemes made by the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis and the Receiver for the Metropolitan Police District as required by directions dated 25th January 2000 given by the Secretary of State for the Home Department under section 409(2) of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (c. 29).back

[21] 1984 c. 27; section 26 is amended with effect from 1st April 2000 by the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (c. 29), section 288.back

[22] Regulations 9(1A), 20(4A), 25A and 38(5A) were added by S.I. 1999/1212.back

 

 


ISBN 0 11 028859 9


 

 

 
© Crown copyright 2001
Prepared 12 March 2001