From IDS Pensions Bulletin 206, June 2007

Company news

• Rolls-Royce closes its remaining final salary schemes to new entrants
• Reed Elsevier and Smith & Nephew carry out full commutation exercise
• Pennon Group introduces a new defined benefit section

Regulatory round-up

• The governance of work-based pension schemes

Dealing with pension scheme deficits

In recent years there has been a great deal of pressure on employers to find ways of reducing pension scheme deficits, particularly with the introduction of the Pension Protection Fund's risk-based levy and the Pensions Regulator's scheme funding requirements. We look at what options are available to employers wanting to reduce scheme deficits.

Scheme costs grow faster than other overheads

The latest Pension Scheme Administration Survey from Capita Hartshead has found that nearly three quarters of employers said that the total cost of managing their pension schemes has grown faster than any other business overhead. The survey also examines schemes' views on recent and proposed pension reforms.

Comment

Helen Sudell, Editor of the IDS Pensions Service, looks at the Pensions Regulator's guidance on abandonment and at how trustees should comply with that advice.