Steve Bee and Robin Ellison examine the future of company pension schemes
Thursday, 25 October 2007
In the latest podcast from Scottish Life's 'Pensions Radio', Steve Bee, Head of Pensions Strategy, talks to Robin Ellison, former NAPF chairman, about the future of company pensions and how a little known piece of European legislation could have a serious impact on larger schemes.
Steve Bee said:
"With a growing number of schemes closing or looking to make the switch from DB to DC, there are a variety of factors which need to be considered when reviewing the future of company pensions. One of these is Solvency II, a little understood directive from the European Commission, which could potentially sound the death knell for big schemes, not to mention racking up the projected liabilities of some schemes by 40 to 60%."
To hear the full conversation, or to access the archive of all Steve's Pensions Radio podcasts, go to the Beehive website.
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For further information please contact:
Scottish Life
Steve Bee
Head of Pensions Strategy
Tel: 020 7506 6740
Alasdair Buchanan
Head of Communications
Tel: 0131 456 7133
Polhill Communications
Jenette Perry
Tel: 020 7655 0530
Editor's Notes:
The BeeHive regularly attracts over 15,000 visitors a month to Steve Bee's regular 'BeeLines' which are dedicated to demystifying pensions.
The site's Pensions Radio podcasts have featured interviews with various key opinion leaders in the industry, including:
- Ros Altmann, pensions campaigner;
- Nigel Waterson, Shadow Minister for Work and Pensions and Conservative front bench spokesman on pensions;
- Lawrence Churchill, Chairman of the Pension Protection Fund;
- Malcolm Small, the Chairman of the Pensions Network;
- Danny Alexander MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow Secretary for Work and Pensions.
Scottish Life was founded in 1881 in Edinburgh as a proprietary company, becoming a mutual company in 1968.
On 1 July 2001, Scottish Life demutualised and transferred its business to The Royal London Mutual Insurance Society Limited. Scottish Life is a division of Royal London and is the specialist pensions business within the Group, providing individual and group pensions to the market via intermediaries.
Scottish Life and Royal London's other intermediary businesses are based in Edinburgh where 1,200 staff are employed, with 190 working in other parts of the UK and overseas.
Royal London Group is a specialist financial service provider. Its businesses focus on those sectors of the market which value premium propositions, operating through a number of brands:
- Scottish Life – UK pensions market
- Bright Grey – UK protection market
- Scottish Life International – offshore investment markets
- RLAM – fund management
- RLAS – life and pensions administration
Royal London is the largest mutual life and pensions company in the UK with Group funds under management of £32.7 billion. Group businesses serve around three million customers and employ 2,570 people.(Figures quoted are as at 30 June 2007).